


Seven's A Crowd

by Current_Queen_Of_Hell



Category: The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Adorable Leo Valdez, Angst, Argo II (Percy Jackson), Arguing, Chatting & Messaging, Childhood Trauma, Crack Treated Seriously, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Everyone Loves Leo Valdez, F/F, F/M, Friends With Benefits, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Jason Grace Lives, Leo Valdez Needs a Hug, Light Angst, Literal Sleeping Together, M/M, Multi, Multiple Pairings, OT7, Overuse of italics, POV Multiple, Past Abuse, Past Child Abuse, Past Rape/Non-con, Piper McLean is whipped, Polyamory, Polyamory Negotiations, Post-The Blood of Olympus (Heroes of Olympus), Prague (City), Sharing a Bed, Sleepovers, Snowball Fight, Vacation, annabeth chase needs a hug, eventual ot7, everyone is whipped for Leo Valdez, how is that not a tag yet, ignoring everything after blood of olympus, jason grace is whipped, mostly paragraphs but also has a lot of texting, ot7-freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-08
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:27:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 27,207
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27956882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Current_Queen_Of_Hell/pseuds/Current_Queen_Of_Hell
Summary: After the war with Gaea, things settled down again. The heroes of the prophecy argued and fought on occasion like any young adults did but they went about their lives as usual. Piper and Jason travelled around the US in hopes of having a normal life, Percy and Annabeth lived the quiet life in New Rome and Frank and Hazel spent their days trying to keep the city in check. All in all it wasn't perfect but it was the way they liked.There was one thing they could all agree on though: Leo was the best thing to ever happen to the universeOr: Hazel, Frank, Jason, Piper, Annabeth and Percy are helplessly in love with one Leo Valdez. Maybe a nice vacation can finally get them to figure it all out and tell him what they feel.
Relationships: Annabeth Chase & Jason Grace & Percy J. & Hazel Levesque & Piper McLean & Leo Valdez & Frank Zhang, Annabeth Chase/Jason Grace/Percy Jackson/Hazel Levesque/Piper McLean/Leo Valdez/Frank Zhang, Annabeth Chase/Leo Valdez, Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson/Leo Valdez, Everyone/Everyone, Hazel Levesque/Frank Zhang, Hazel Levesque/Leo Valdez, Hazel Levesque/Leo Valdez/Frank Zhang, Jason Grace/Leo Valdez, Jason Grace/Piper McLean, Jason Grace/Piper McLean/Leo Valdez, Leo Valdez/Everyone, Leo Valdez/Frank Zhang, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Nico di Angelo/Leo Valdez, Percy Jackson/Leo Valdez, Piper McLean/Leo Valdez
Comments: 48
Kudos: 149





	1. Intro

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for checking this out, it's honestly just a little pet project I thought of because the idea of ot7 HoO was kinda funny to me lmao
> 
> Anyway I hope you do like it did put effort into it :))

Hazel frowned as she walked into the common room of the Argo II. Jason and Piper were back at it again, arguing over the same topic as always. They were whispering quietly as to not raise suspicion but sitting close to the door Hazel came through kind of blew it for them so, Hazel could still hear. Whispering was probably a good idea all things considered, after all once the others would hear, the couple-argument would turn into a group-argument within seconds. Not that Hazel wouldn’t participate. She’d simply be quieter, waiting for her chance to strike and leave victoriously.

“I’ve known _him_ the longest, obviously I have the best chance with him!” Piper whisper yelled. Jason’s frown grew, the crease between his eyebrows almost deep enough to swim in.

“But I’m _his_ best friend.” Jason argued. “If anyone, I should have the best chance.”

“Yeah, but have you considered; we share everything. I know everything about _him_ , and _he_ knows everything about me. I’m the best pick.”

“That doesn’t mean _he_ likes you like that. Maybe _he_ thinks of you as a sister.”

Piper’s faced morphed into disgust and she playfully hit Jason’s shoulder, “Don’t ever say that again. I’d rather die.”

Jason snorted and shrugged, “It might be. Who knows.”

The two of them had been dating since forever, longer than Hazel had known them, yet somehow thy managed to catch feelings for the same person. How they did that, Hazel would never understand. She’d always thought they only had eyes for each other. Then again, Hazel couldn’t really speak on the matter. A year into her relationship with Frank, she’d admitted to him that she may have slight feelings for someone else and all Frank had done had been sigh deeply and nod in resignation, agreeing with her, claiming feelings for the same person. At first Hazel had thought he’d only said it to make her feel less guilty but soon enough they found themselves laying in Hazel’s room at Camp Jupiter, talking about their shared crush together. For a while Hazel had been scared that it might break up their relationship, that Frank and she would grow apart.

The opposite had happened.

Over the next few weeks, they’d started getting closer and discovering more and more about one another and what the other liked. They’d become more open. More willing to speak to the other about their feelings or thoughts. After all, nothing could be weirder than both of them having a crush on the same person but also each other. After that confession, Hazel figured nothing could shake their relationship. She could only assume that it’d gone the same for Piper and Jason, though the two of them had admitted to the group that their feelings for the person had been there for longer.

“What are you talking about?” Hazel asked, pretending that she hadn’t been eavesdropping. Piper’s eyes widened when she heard Hazel’s voice. Jason’s face had a similar expression painted across it, though his looked a little less dumbstruck and more apologetic.

“I was just telling Jason that I didn’t want to go to some lame football game with him.” Piper lied.

“Are you sure? I thought you were talking about someone.” Hazel knew that she shouldn’t push it, it’d only lead to arguments within the group again, but she couldn’t help herself. Not when the conversation revolved around _him_.

Jason shook his head awkwardly, “I wanted to take Piper to a game for my birthday, but she said she’d rather go to a fancy restaurant.”

Hazel hummed and nodded, feigning innocence, “Huh, I thought you might be talking about _him_ ,” She said a little louder than necessary. Maybe it was revenge. Piper and Jason had managed to get _him_ to hang out with her alone a few days ago, taking _him_ to see sunflowers in a city they’d visited on their vacation. So, sue her for wanting to enact a little revenge. Hazel had had the same idea, had meant to take _him_ for a nice walk and get ice cream but Jason and Piper had been faster.

“Talking about whom?” Percy suddenly asked from across the room, his head resting in Annabeth’s lap as she worked on some new designs for Mount Olympus. His eyebrows furrowed and when he moved Annabeth lifted her head as well. Piper sent Hazel a dirty look and huffed a bit, before answering. The moment she opened her mouth, Hazel regretted pushing it. She should’ve just left it and moved on with her own plans. She should’ve gone to _his_ room and asked _him_ to hang out instead of getting involved in this. Really, it would’ve been smarter than getting into this with the rest of the group.

“Oh, Jason and I were just talking about which one of us fits better with _him_.” Piper answered lightly, ever the instigator. “Clearly, I’m the best choice.”

Instantly all hell broke loose.

Percy sat up on the couch, his face confused and maybe a little offended. Next to him, Annabeth put down her notes and leaned forward a bit, just enough to let Hazel know that she was about to get into the argument fully if nobody stopped her. Frank stopped shifting through the tourist brochure he’d picked up a few days ago and scowled. Maybe Hazel could just back out now, before things got heated.

“What makes you say that?” Percy asked, not yet the angry that Hazel fears but he his eyes had gone a little bit darker and his grip on Annabeth’s sleeve had tightened.

“I mean, It’s obvious. We know each other best and we’ve been together the longest. It’s only normal that I’d have the best chance with him. I should be the one to ask him out first.”

And yeah, that was another thing. A few months after the whole Gaia thing was over, and everyone up to and including Percy and Annabeth had admitted that maybe they had a thing for _him_ , everyone had agreed to not do anything about the feelings. Hazel had been the one to suggest it, saying that it’d only break the group apart if someone were to get rejected or, even worse, succeed in asking _him_ out. So, they’d agreed to keep their feelings to themselves and simply whine to each other about _him_ as much as they needed, but to never act on said feelings. At first, it’d worked well. Very well in fact. Suddenly everyone had something in common, something to bond over and to agree with. Everyone could agree that _he_ was perfect and that _he_ was probably one of the best people to ever grace the planet with _his_ presence. Of course, everyone still loved their own significant other.

Hazel’s feelings for Frank hadn’t changed at all over the course of the past few months, they’d only grown stronger. She knew that it was the same for Annabeth and Percy and for Jason and Piper. So, really how was Hazel supposed to know it’d turn into arguments and fights? As far as she’d been concerned just hanging out with _him_ had been enough.

But then _he_ had gotten a girlfriend. It hadn’t lasted long, it’d been more of a fling if you asked Hazel, but still. It’d changed everything. Well, maybe not everything but it made all of them realize something. He wouldn’t be available forever. When he’d been single it’d been fine, because even if none of them could have him then at least nobody else did.

When he went on that first date and returned victorious Hazel had realized that the idea of him being with someone else didn’t sit right with her. Not at all. In a way it’d made her feel that if she couldn’t have him neither could anyone else. It’d been morbid and Hazel had spent days scolding herself for thinking of him that way, but she couldn’t help it. She just wanted him to be with her, hell she was even willing to share him with the others. Anything as long as he didn’t have to leave them. The others had come to a similar conclusion and soon enough it’d been hell on earth at the camps. Then when Chiron sent them on a vacation as a gift for always working so hard, it’d only gotten worse. Everyone had realized that _he_ wouldn’t be single forever and so the vacation had turned into the wooing Olympics.

So, they’d all agreed to maybe make their feelings public to him. That had been the easy part of the agreement. The hard part had been figuring out who should be the one to break it to him and, subsequently also have the biggest chance with him. They still hadn’t gotten to a conclusion, even after nearly five days on vacation and even more days of arguing before that. At this point Hazel wasn’t sure it’d ever go away. Their feelings for him were more likely to go away than the arguing over who should be allowed to ask him out.

Jason shook his head, “No. I’m his best friend. I should get first pick.”

At that Percy laughed, “But who says that he’d be into his best friend?” He said, “I’m the team leader. Besides we’re practically partners in crime. If anything, I should be the one to ask him.”

“Percy, honey, I love you but that’s dumb.” Annabeth told him, “He and I are on the same level intellectually. I have the best chance at telling him without making a complete fool of myself. We get each other.”

“What about me?” Frank asked, clearly annoyed at being left out of the conversation, “Since we don’t hate each other anymore, we’ve been getting along well. Plus, I got him that one bag he liked, and he gave me that pouch for my stick.” He argued, “We respect each other more than anyone else here.”

“You called him shit for brains literally yesterday. How is that respect?” Percy said.

“Like you don’t call him dickhead every other day. Besides, it’s affectionate.”

“That’s a load of bullshit and we both know it. I’m the oldest and the leader, I deserve the first chance.” Percy argued, “Besides, Annabeth may get him on an intellectual level, but we all know when it comes to pranks and humor, I’m the one who matches him best.”

“Are you really the leader though?” Piper asked. Hazel knew full well that it was just get Percy riles up.

Percy never made it a point of importance that Chiron had appointed him unofficial leader of the Seven, but sometimes it did come up. Like when they were meant to go on a new quest, Percy was the one who got to see the oracle or the one who got more details on the situation than the others. Hazel also knew that nobody minded. She was glad she didn’t have to do more leading than she already had to do in New Rome, and she knew Jason and Frank felt the same. Piper didn’t strike her as a leader type, more the outspoken loud type who would obliterate anyone while making it look flawless and easy. Annabeth was more the second in command, advisor type that would probably teach them how to bring down Olympus by example. And Leo, well Leo wasn’t the leader type either. Of all of them he was probably the least leader like. That didn’t make him invaluable though. It just meant that the best fit for unofficial leader and decision-maker was Percy. So really, nobody was mad at Percy for embracing the title.

They’d all encouraged him to even, when Chiron had mentioned it the first time. Everyone had been ecstatic at the suspect of Percy receiving the recognition he deserved. But sometimes the lot of them would use the leader title to tease and prod at Percy. It was just a joke. Just a little jab between friends. Still, it always got Percy to frown and whine that he wasn’t being respected by anyone.

“Are you really his best friend though?” Percy shot back and Piper nearly lunged out of her seat to strangle him. Hazel had to suppress the need to get up and go in between them. If she did it would only end in bloodshed.

"Guys!” Annabeth interrupted, “This is ridiculous. We can’t keep doing this. We’ll never agree which one of us is best to ask him out.” She said and Hazel didn’t like to admit it, but she had a point, “If we keep this up, we’ll just end up hating each other. I’ll always think that Percy and I are the best choice, and Piper and Jason will think the same about themselves, and so will Hazel and Frank. There’s no point to this. Let’s just all go back to ignoring the feelings and not doing anything about. Trying to figure out who’d be the best for him was stupid in the first place.”

That didn’t sit right with Hazel at all and it didn’t seem to sit right with any of the others either, especially Jason and Piper, who to be fair, were closest to him anyway. Hazel fidgeted with the sleeves of her shirt and then finally made up her mind, speaking for the first time since starting this whole mess.

“What if we change our approach?” Hazel asked, everyone’s attention falling on her, “I agree with Annabeth. We won’t get anywhere if we keep arguing over him. So, what if we just change our strategy?”

“What do you mean?” Annabeth asked, suspicious of the sudden agreement.

“We all like each other plenty. I mean, we’re all dating someone in the group, so I say we just share him.”

“Excuse me?” Piper asked, offense dripping from her voice like a waterfall, “He is not a piece of meat to go around and be slaughtered by you people.”

Hazel chose to ignore the last part. Love made people do strange things after all, she could excuse the hidden insult this once, “I didn’t mean it like that.” Hazel told her, “I meant; why don’t we all try to woo him together? As a team effort. We do everything together anyway, so why not this? I like you all enough to share his affection and I’d be happy to get even just a sixth of it, rather than none. Don’t you agree?”

The room fell awfully quiet and Hazel was beginning to think that the idea was stupid and to just apologize for bringing it up before Piper spoke again. The corners of her mouth were pulled downward, but she didn’t look angry, just kind of sad.

“I hate to say it, but Hazel is probably right. I don’t want to think about the fact that I might not get of him at all and she’s right that a sixth would be better than nothing. I’m willing to try it all together if you are.”

Hazel breathed in relief and shot Piper a thankful smile who returned it, just a bit smaller. She didn’t look too sure yet, but Hazel was just glad that the idea hadn’t been completely terrible. For Piper and Jason to agree it would mean giving up more of his attention. Because as of now, Piper and Jason shared approximately half of his attention. Going along with Piper’s plan would reduce ach of them to a sixth. It made Hazel all the more relieved to see Piper agreeing as the first one. Maybe then the others would see reason and agree too.

“So, what you’re saying instead of dating _only him_ we all date each other _including him_?” Percy asked, a little lost on the concept.

Hazel shrugged, “I don’t know if we have to date each other per se, I mean I already have Frank and you have Annabeth. We’ve never talked about whether we like someone other than him and our significant others.” She said, getting surer of herself with every word, “But I think we don’t have to all date each other for this to work. We can just all date him and our SO separately, you know. Kind of like an open relationship limited to our group.”

“What, you think he’d want six partners?” Frank asked, a little unsure. Hazel had expected him to be the least into the idea. Of all of them he got jealous the easiest. She could still remember all the times he’d gotten angry at Leo for talking to Hazel.

“That’s up to _him_ to decide. All I’m saying is that we could do this as a team effort instead of constantly trying to sabotage each other. Show him love together and maybe he’ll like all of us, or maybe just one or maybe none but at least he’ll feel loved and we’ll stop fighting.”

“You think it’ll work?” Jason asked. He didn’t look terribly worried. More curious. Kind of like Piper. The two of them were similar that way. They weren’t worried when it came to _him_ , they were always the surest. Probably because they knew him best. Compared to the two of them, everyone played second fiddle to _him_. Still, it didn’t stop any of the others from trying.

“We’ll find out, just like last time we made a plan. Maybe it will and maybe it won’t. We won’t know until we try.” Hazel said.

Piper nodded, “So do we all agree on this?”

The two girls looked around the room trying to gauge everyone’s reactions to the suggestion. Annabeth looked a little offended that she hadn’t been the one to come up with the plan, Percy still seemed a little confused, but he didn’t seem to be against the idea. Any time someone’s well-being was involved Percy was the first on the scene so it only made sense for him to be worried about the possible fallout this could cause. Jason seemed on board as soon as Piper had said she was in, so he wasn’t a cause for concern for Hazel either. The only one who was suspiciously quiet was Frank. Hazel was a little worried he might be too jealous or scared of sharing. Hazel could understand. She really could. Sharing him with the rest of the group hadn’t been the original plan, but she did have to admit having just a bit of him was better than nothing. She just hoped Frank could understand.

“Are we all in agreement?” Piper asked again, “Everyone who’s in favor say Aye.”

A chorus of hesitant ‘Aye’s echoed through the dining room and Hazel was glad to see that everyone had agreed, disregarding the varying degrees of excitement.

“But if we’re doing this, we need rules.” Annabeth said. She had a point. Without rules this whole thing might fall apart.

“So, what do you suggest?” Jason asked.

Annabeth gestured for all of them to come sit at the dining table. She sat at the head of the table and pulled open her laptop, starting a new document titled ‘Rules’. Hazel sat next to her, Frank on her other side. Across from her Jason and Piper sat, with Percy on the other end of the table at the head. It fit, Hazel thought, the two leaders sitting at the heads of the table.  
The situation felt irritatingly surreal. Hazel couldn’t wrap her head around the fact that not only had they all agreed to share him, they were also making actual rules about the whole arrangement. She pinched her arm to make sure she wasn’t dreaming.

“First rule, nothing happens without his consent.” Annabeth stated.

Hazel scrunched her eyebrows, but Frank answered before she could, “Did you think we’d do anything without making sure he’s fine with it?”

“No, I just wanted to make sure we were all on the same page.”

Piper rolled her eyes, “Whatever. Second rule, after every time you hang out alone with _him_ you have to text our group chat. The one without _him_.”

“You’re one to talk.” Percy whined, “You always go out with _him_ without telling us.”

“I guess we’ll all tell each other from now on then. Besides, you’re just as bad. You always play pranks with _him_ without telling us!”

“Because they wouldn’t be pranks if you guys knew!”

“At least involve me in the pranks. You know I could bring so much—”

Jason interrupted before they could keep going, “Guys. Stop it.” He said holding up his hands. “Piper is right though. It’s best if we’re all honest with each other here. No keeping secrets and no secret meetings either.”

Everyone nodded and Annabeth added it to the list.

“Anything else?”

The room fell silent. Then Jason nodded decisively, “No sexy stuff.”

Piper whipped her head around to him and frowned, “Like in general or…?”

Hazel couldn’t help but laugh a bit. Piper wasn’t overtly sexual; in fact, she rarely was. The only time Hazel had seen her attempt to be sexy or care about sex-appeal had been during Percy’s big birthday party where she’d gotten drunk and tried very hard to get into _his_ pants. It hadn’t worked. Still, seeing Piper so offended at the idea of nothing sexual being allowed was funny.

Hazel herself didn’t care much. Sure, she wasn’t the confused 14-year-old she’d been when she met all of them, anymore but she also wasn’t terribly interested in pursuing anything sexual with _him._ She knew she’d enjoy it and she’d be open to it, had done stuff with Frank before and liked it, but it wasn’t like she actively complained about how horny _he_ made her unlike some others in the group.

She’d once walked in on Piper and Percy complaining to each other about how hot _he_ had looked earlier that day and how it’d made them horny. She’d brushed it off easily, but it’d also occurred to her that she thought about those things less than the others. Over the years since her resurrection, she’d thought about it more, had actually tried to get to know her own body and be comfortable enough with it to further her relationship with Frank but she supposed growing up during a massive war and coming back from the dead did that to you. And anyway, she was only twenty. She still had plenty of time to get to know herself and the things she liked and didn’t like.

“I say only until we’ve figured out exactly how he feels about all of us and the situation.” Annabeth suggested, “That way it won’t get confusing or unfair.”

“What if he initiates something though?” Percy asked.

Annabeth thought for a second before answering, “Then I suppose it’s fair game. But I don’t think he will.”

“Also, if he does it goes in the group chat instantly.” Piper added, “You cuddle with _him_? Group-chat. You get a kiss? Group-chat. Anything at all concerning _him_? Group-chat.”

“Isn’t that a bit overkill?” Percy asked, frowning.

“No, that way we avoid any and all misunderstandings or fights. If something happens it goes in the chat and we can all talk about it.”

Percy sighed and nodded, “Yeah, alright, that’s fair, I guess. Put it on the list.”

While Annabeth typed Piper spoke again, “I also say we take a picture from every date or hang out. That way we won’t lie to each other to make the others jealous and we’ll get to have more cute pictures of _him_.”

“Isn’t that suspicious? And invading _his_ privacy?” Frank asked, clutching the tourist pamphlet tightly in his hand. Hazel put her hand on his knee to soothe him.

“Isn’t the whole point of this for _him_ to notice that we’re into _him_?” Percy fired back.

Frank frowned, “Still, isn’t taking pictures of him all the time kind of weird? Like won’t he get freaked out?”

Hazel shrugged, “I think as long as the pictures aren’t strange it should be fine. We take pictures of _him_ and us all the time, it’s nothing new.”

“Yeah, I agree,” Piper nodded animatedly, “Like no bum shots, no nudes or anything like that either.”

“How the fuck would any of us get anything close to nudes?” Annabeth asked matter-of-factly and yeah, Hazel would like to know that too. When the hell had anyone managed to get _him_ naked _and_ get a picture of it without being burned to death?

“Jason and _he_ went skinny dipping a while ago and took a bunch of selfies and pics.” Piper said.

Instantly, Jason’s face went beet red and he shoved it in his hands, “Pipes! You weren’t supposed to tell anyone about that. I only showed you the pictures because you said you wouldn’t tell anyone!”

Piper snorted, “The pictures were worth it.”

Hazel couldn’t help the frown on her face, “You went swimming without us and didn’t say anything?”

“Hey, that was before we made all these rules.” Jason defended and Hazel wanted to argue that it would have been curtesy to tell them anyway, but Annabeth interrupted them again, her face only a bit red.

“Focus everyone. We want to get this done before _he_ wakes up, so _he_ won’t know.”

And fuck right, it’s already around lunch time. _He’ll_ wake up soon and Hazel has no idea how she’d explain this to _him_ without sounding creepy and weird. She supposed it was kind of weird. She gripped Frank’s leg tighter, willing herself to focus on the situation at hand. She had time to whine about wanting to go swimming with _him_ later when she was in her room with Frank.

“I’d also say no cockblocking each other.” Percy said. Of all of them he seemed the least perturbed by the whole skinny-dipping situation. Probably because he’s been known to pull similar stuff.

“What’s that?” Hazel asked. It’s been nearly six years since she came back to the living, yet somehow there are still words and expressions she had yet to hear. This was one of them. She’d heard it before, but she’d never been able to figure out what it meant and at camp she’d been too busy to look up such an unimportant word. Now though she felt it might be good to know.

“It’s like when you stop two people from fucking when they clearly want to.” Percy tried to explain.

“I thought we agreed no sex?” Hazel asked.

Percy huffed and laughed, “I mean, yeah but I meant it more in general.” He said trying to find the right words, “Like if Jace scores a date I won’t get in between that or if Annie is trying to get a date I won’t try to butt in and take it from her. Like be considerate is what I mean, I guess. Just don’t try to ruin anyone’s chances.”

Hazel nodded, “That’s only fair. We’re all equal in this. It’s him who decides.”

Everyone nodded and that’s how it went on. They made a list with a total of twenty-two rules, how they actually came up with that many Hazel still isn’t sure, and by the time everyone had added their two cents on the topic it was noon. Annabeth had shut her laptop and shoved on the couch before claiming to go cook lunch for everyone. Percy had jumped up instantly in an attempt to keep her from burning down the kitchen on accident. Hazel stayed in the dining room with Frank while Jason and Piper excused themselves to Jason’s room until lunch, which Hazel had learned the hard way was code for ‘we’re gonna go fuck don’t interrupt please’.

“You were quiet earlier.” Hazel said more than asked as she sat down on one of the couches by the side with Frank. He looked at her and gave her a gentle, soft smile. It made her knees weak. She thanked the Gods that she was sitting. Otherwise, she’d be on the ground right now.

“I was just listening.”

“Are you okay with this?” She asked carefully.

“With what exactly?”

Hazel put her hand on his and squeezed, “All of this. I know you don’t like sharing and I know you don’t like the way you feel about him.”

“I’m fine.” He said quickly, “Really, I am.”

“Frank, you don’t have to be. It’s okay if you don’t like this. You’re allowed to say so. We can rethink it all or talk about it again.”

“No, no, I don’t want that.” He shook his head, “I do want him, and I want you, but I don’t know how to feel about sharing. I’ve gotten used to the idea of sharing you with him or the other way around, but it’s different with everyone else.”

“You don’t have to be comfortable with this instantly. It’ll take time.”

“I know, but I don’t want it to. I want it to all feel fine like it does for you.” Frank looked at her, his eyes strangely shiny, “I don’t like that I can’t wrap my head around the person I like being with someone else at the same time. It feels wrong to me.”

“It doesn’t have to feel right.” Hazel assured, “All I ask is that you try it. That you don’t get angry when someone holds his hand or when Jason and Piper whisk him away again.”

“I’ll try.”

“That’s all I ask.”

He smiled and she pressed a chaste kiss to his cheek, simply meant to reassure and comfort. Frank’s cheek warmed under hers and she giggled at the thought of Frank still getting embarrassed after all this time. She figured it must be the feeling of being comforted. He never did like asking for help. Hazel was proud of herself for getting him to the point where he could at least ask for someone to listen. The next stop was to get him so far as to ask for advice and to be comfortable to do so without being prompted. They still had a long way to go but Hazel was proud of where they were so far. She couldn’t wait to have him in the mix as well.

Just as Annabeth called out for someone to set the table to they could eat, the devil incarnate walked through the door. He’s not the actual devil but if you asked Hazel sometimes, he came pretty close. If you asked Frank, he was the biggest idiot on the planet. Annabeth liked to say he was the human version of heelies, always lighting up at the wrong time with the wrong intensity. According to Jason and Piper he was the literal sun itself, gracing the earth with his divine presence. And if you asked all of them together, well that was easy. He was the reason this whole mess started in the first place.

Leo walked through the door of the dining room, messy hair, mid-yawn with one hand scratching at his hip while the other rubbed his eyes. His shirt rode up a bit and Hazel swore she saw heaven. The moment the others took notice it was as though all earlier arguments were forgotten; the only thing left in any of their heads a chant of ‘Leo, Leo, Leo’.

“Good morning,” He mumbled sleepily. His soft, tired voice tugged at Hazel’s heart in a way she was far more familiar than she’d liked to admit. “You guys were really fucking loud earlier; I swear I could barely sleep.”

Hazel’s hands ran cold and for a second she was afraid he might have found out. Piper walked in behind him, wrapping her arms around his middle as soon as she was close enough to do so. She rested her chin on his shoulder and smiled.

“We’re sorry. We didn’t mean to.” She mumbled. She looked a bit dazed and more than a little messy with the way her hair was standing up and she was wearing Jason’s clothes, but Hazel thought she looked good all things considered.

“What were you yelling about anyway?”

Leo moved across the room, Piper still plastered to his back, and made his way to the kitchen to get some of the food Percy made. Percy beamed when Leo’s face softened at the food and hazel couldn’t help the way her chest ached at the soft display in front of her.  
Jason trailed into the room not even a second later and attached himself to Leo’s side instantly. In a way Hazel was jealous of how easily they could just be close to him. How they had free passes to touch and be near him as they pleased. But she knew it came with the way they knew Leo. Nobody else there knew Leo as long as they had and nobody else had cried as much as those two did when Leo was proclaimed dead. They’d all cried but Jason and Piper had spent days locked away grieving for their best friend. So, Hazel couldn’t fault them for being allowed closer than the others. It didn’t stop her from feeling the way she did though.

“Just some dumb arguments about where we should stop next on our vacation.” Jason said, lying as easily as breathing, “What do you think about Prague?” He asked absentmindedly.

The three joined everyone else at the table and Leo sat between Jason and Piper. They each had an arm around his chair or a hand on his. They looked awfully domestic.

“Prague?” Leo asked.

Hazel nodded, though none of them had spoken about their next destination yet. They’d been too busy arguing about Leo to actually get to that. But Prague didn’t sound bad. Hazel had never been there, and she was pretty sure neither had anyone else. Besides she’d heard it was pretty in winter and with the way the weather was going she had no doubt it’d snow. It wasn't too far off from their last stop either.

“Yeah,” Annabeth said, “They have some pretty buildings and churches I wanna check out and I’m sure you guys could find stuff you like as well.”

Leo thought for a second, oblivious to everyone’s expecting gaze on him, waiting for him to make the final decision, “I heard they have a really cool black-light theater. Can we go?”

Hazel didn’t even have to think before answering, “Sure. We can go anywhere you want.”

She couldn’t deny Leo anything. Neither could any of the rest for that matter.

With that the table turned to mindless chatter about one thing or the other. Leo told them about one of his new inventions while everyone listened to varying degrees of interest. As the lunch went on, there was a silent agreement among them:

Two weeks in Prague to woo the man of their dreams.

Hazel couldn’t wait.


	2. Chapter 2

The hardest thing, Piper thought, was being so close to Leo. Don’t get her wrong, she loved being close to him just as much as she loved being close to Jason. It was probably one of her favorite past times, attaching herself to Leo or Jason and never letting go. The issue was, whereas Jason knew what the touches meant, knew they weren’t platonic and that she loved him in ways words couldn’t describe, Leo didn’t know that. And fuck did it hurt.  
When she hugged him, he didn’t understand. He didn’t understand that the kisses on his cheek or the hands under his shirt weren’t just friendly ways to embarrass him or warm up her hands. They were deliberate. With every touch Piper wanted him to understand. She wanted him to know. To see how much she loved and wanted him. Just once. Just once did she want his eyes to light up in recognition at a kiss against his nose or a hand holding his.  
She knew she was lucky. That she shouldn’t be complaining, taking it all for granted. Frank and Annabeth got the least affection from Leo, closely followed by Percy. The three of them weren’t as close to Leo and had had some bad blood with him. So, in that regard Piper was more than just lucky. She and Jason were the only ones allowed to touch and grip and hug with no questions and no repercussions. 

He didn’t tense and he didn’t push them away when they held him close. Not everyone had that privilege. Hazel was allowed to touch but not always. Percy was allowed to do the typical bro side hugs and shoulder clasps but that was about it. Annabeth’s ability to hold Leo extended only to handing him things and occasionally leaning over him while working on a project. Frank’s touching rights were even less. The few times Piper had seen Frank touch Leo had been exclusively during training or arguments that got out of hand. But the latter didn’t count because they weren’t pleasant touches.  
Still, it wasn’t enough. Not for Piper.  
She wanted more. She wanted to hold Leo’s hand while walking down the street and she wanted to kiss him goodbye when she left to go visit Jason at New Rome. Better yet never have to say goodbye and take Leo with her.  
She wanted to lean on him during boring car rides, and to wake up in the morning with Leo between her and Jason. She wanted all of it. Every caress, and gentle touch he was willing to give her and in return she’d give him the world. If only he could see that.

The thing is Leo had this habit. This very sweet, endearing habit that Piper usually loved. Except today. Today she absolutely loathed this habit and the person belonging to it.  
Growing up in California, Piper had never seen snow much. She’d gone with her dad to ski resorts, but she’d never gone to school on a snowy day or played in the snow with her friends. For Leo, she knew it was much the same. He’d grown up in Texas for the most part and most of his foster families had been somewhere in the south, so for him snow was about as rare as a full week without monsters. Which of course, lead to him being understandably excited when they all woke up to snow falling onto the Argo II the next morning. Piper and Jason had him sand-witched between them (Jason had feigned a nightmare to get Leo to join them for once), and before Piper had the chance to snap a picture for the group-chat, Leo was up and at it, jumping from one foot to the other as he stared out of the window like a child on Christmas.

Piper watched fondly as his hair bounced and he clapped his hands. He looked stunning in the pale, early morning light, standing in front of the bright window. Piper thought he might be an angel with the way he glowed.  
Whenever he got particularly excited, Leo would do this thing where he’d drag whoever was closest into being excited with him. That could either be him simply forcing Jason to sit and watch a boring documentary and talking the entire time, or it could extend all the way to jumping up and down, clapping and giggling while he told Piper about whatever he was fixating on now. Today, it seemed to be the latter. She couldn’t blame him. If she was any less used to snow, she’d probably be similarly excited. Still, all the bouncing made Leo’s shirt move and with the bright light coming from the window into the dark room, and Leo’s disinterest in wearing long trousers, Piper had a perfect view of everything. 

Looking over at Jason, she found him looking absolutely whipped. Not that she was any better. Without thinking much of it, she lifted her phone and snapped a quick picture of Leo mid jump, massive grin on his face. His bum was covered by the big white shirt and he was wearing Pajama shorts, so Piper figured the photo was innocent enough, and sent it to the group-chat. A first contact so to say.

It was the first day after their agreement. The first day after everyone had agreed to share Leo. So far nothing had happened, but Piper decided to start the day in way that would let everyone know she was on board with the plan. To keep peace, she told herself.  
Her phone lit up in her hand and she looked down to find Percy had responded to the text. She checked whether Leo was looking, just to be sure, but found him telling Jason about something, so she figured it was safe to open.

Peter Johnson:  
?????  
Did he spend the night with u guys?

Wise Girl:  
You**

Beauty Queen✨: He did 

He even cuddled with us😇😇 

Peter Johnson:  
Is that even legal?

Beauty Queen✨: 

We didn’t say anything about just sleeping👀👀

Peter Johnson:  
Send him out for breakfast I want attention😞

Wise Girl:  
You are getting attention right now

Peter Johnson:  
Yeah but not enough

Beauty Queen✨: 

Control your man woman he’s getting needy

Piper heard a loud laugh coming from the common room, followed by indistinct whining. Mission accomplished then.  
She grinned to herself and got out of bed, moving to where Leo was now opening the window to try and catch snowflakes. How he imagined doing that when they were flying relatively fast right now, she wasn’t sure. But the sight of Leo leaning out over the edge to try and catch a stray snowflake was too adorable to make her try and stop him. So, she settled on wrapping her arms around his back.

“Shouldn’t you be making out with Jace right now?” He asked, unaware of the way Piper’s heart stung in her chest. She tightened her arms around him and shoved her face into his back in an attempt to ignore the way her chest felt like it might burst, and not in a good way.

“Hm,” She hummed, “No, I think I need to make sure you don’t accidentally fall from the ship. We can’t be losing our repair boy this early into the trip.”

“Is that all I am to you?” He asked jokingly. At least Piper hoped it was a joke.

“You’re also my favorite space heater. Close the window, it’s getting cold.” She whined.

Leo laughed, “But I was to catch snowflakes! I’ve never seen snow before. Not like this.”

“C’mon Leo,” Jason said, now fully dressed and by the door, “We can go out on the deck together later and catch snowflakes. I might even calm the wind a bit for you so it’s easier.”

Leo physically lit up in Piper’s arms, turning to beam at Jason. If Piper’s face weren’t buried in his back she might have been permanently blinded by the bright smile. Gods save her, this was going to be a long couple of weeks.  
Piper let go of Leo reluctantly and went to get dressed as well while Leo left to go to his own room and do the same. Jason had offered him some of his clothes while Piper silently hoped he’d stay and change here, but Leo had snorted and winked, telling him Piper might get jealous if Jason did that. Piper wanted to roll her eyes. She’d be anything but jealous if she saw Leo wearing Jason’s clothes. The opposite really. Leo in Jason’s oversized clothes was a sight to behold, one that she’d never get enough of.  
Breakfast went by with only minimal glaring on Percy’s part, who still seemed unhappy with his current Leo-less life. Piper found it amusing to say the least.

“Any plans for today?” Hazel asked, ever the peace maker.

Annabeth shrugged, “I’m going to continue working on some designs for Olympus.”

It was an invitation for Leo to join. All their suggestions would be. Silently, everyone hoped for Leo to join them for the day. But it was his decision. So, it was really on them to come up with the most interesting plans. The joke was on all of them though, because Piper and Jason already knew Leo’s plans and could accommodate accordingly.

“I was gonna go to the gym a bit and maybe get some training in,” Percy said while shoving a waffle into his mouth, “After that I might play smash or something.”  
Everyone nodded and Frank shrugged, “I’ll just clean up around here a bit. It’s been getting kind of messy and I’d like it all cleaned before we end up buying stuff in Prague again. Maybe I’ll start that book Haz gave me for my birthday.”

“Yeah, I think I’ll join Frank.” Hazel agreed, “The kitchen really needs cleaning up and my room couldn’t be messier.”

That left only Piper and Jason. Piper could barely suppress the smug smile, knowing she’d already won.

“Jace and I are gonna go out on the deck and have some fun in the snow.” She said as casually as she could, “It’s been a while since we’ve seen proper snowfall and I have yet to lose a snowball tournament to Jace.”

Jason spluttered in offence, “I won that one time when we were in New York!” He argued.

“I love you, but that was not a win. I slipped and you were too pussy to keep going.”

“What was I supposed to do? Just keep throwing?”

“Yes.” Piper answered and Jason snorted shaking his head disapprovingly. Piper turned to Leo who hadn’t said anything yet, happily shoving food into his mouth while he typed away at his phone, “If you want you can join us. It’ll be like at Wilderness school again, just with snow instead of sand. Maybe we can even shove snow down Jace’s shirt this time.” She offered.  
Leo looked up from his phone, clearly not having paid attention to anything that had been said. Piper didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry, knowing all their attempts had been futile.

“What?”

“I was asking if you want to come join Jace and I outside in the snow.”

His eyes lit up and he pocketed his phone, “I’m gonna annihilate both of you.”

“We’ll see, Repair Boy. Maybe I’ll be the one destroying you.”

“You’re on, Beauty Queen.”

Piper could feel the disappointed looks on her, but she couldn’t care less right now. Call her selfish, but nothing in the world felt better than having Jason’s and Leo’s attention all to herself. Nothing could make the warm feeling in her chest go away. Not Annabeth’s pout or Hazel’s sad smile. Right now, all Piper could think about was Leo’s pretty smile and Jason’s exhausted laughter at their play-fights.

“Meet you on the deck in twenty.” Leo said, a mischievous glint in his eye, already getting up from his seat, “Get ready to go down.”

 _I’m ready to go down on you_ , Piper wanted to say but she kept the thought to herself. For now, at least. They’d promised no sexy times and Piper was a woman of her word. That didn’t stop her from thinking it though. Especially when Leo showed up on the Deck, almost half an hour later wearing what no one in their right mind would call weather appropriate. Both Piper and Jason were dressed for the weather. One look out of the window after breakfast had told them, that not only had it started snowing more and more, it had also gotten considerably colder, what with the wind and their altitude. So, Piper had pulled on a knit sweater, a scarf and a long brown coat. Though not even the snow and wind could stop her from wearing her pale ripped jeans. She made up for the lack of leg wear with the doc martens Leo had gifted her last Christmas. 

Piper didn’t care much for fashion, but she could say that wearing nice clothes that fit her and accentuated her looks made her more confident. She’d begun thinking of clothes less as a barrier between her and the world and who she was supposed to be, and as something that was expected of her, and rather like an extension of herself. As a way to express how she felt and who she was. It had made her feel more comfortable with herself, knowing she had control over what she looked like and who she presented herself as. Not to mention that it was also simply aesthetically pleasing.

Over the years Jason had grown more fashionable as well. Piper had bought him a bunch of clothes, duly tired of the constant purple shirts and washed-out jeans. It wasn’t that Jason didn’t look good in them; it was more that Piper thought he could do better. So, she’d shoved a mustard yellow turtleneck, grey jeans and a brown coat into his hands. Lo and behold, he looked fantastic in it and Piper couldn’t say she didn’t enjoy dressing her boyfriend in clothes that made him look incredibly hot and sophisticated. Sue her for wanting both of them to look good while kicking ass. 

“You look like you’re about to ask me whether $50 is enough for a twinkie.” Leo commented as he stepped out on the deck. Piper cringed at his clothes. She’d done her best to dress Jason both comfortably and appropriate for the weather. Leo on the other hand, seemed to have completely forgotten about the negative degrees.

“And you look like you should be out by the pool right now.” Jason said. His eyebrows were furrowed, and Piper knew he was suppressing the urge to lecture Leo right now.

Leo was dressed in what could only be described as abysmal. From what Piper could tell he’d simply shoved a zip up hoodie over his thin shirt and pulled on a different pair of shorts than the ones he’d worn at breakfast. To be fair he was wearing socks and sneakers, but Piper doubted that they’d keep him warm at all. Especially if he didn’t close his hoodie, which she also doubted he’d do. He was that one kid who’d go to school in shorts even at -10°C. 

“Where are your clothes?” Piper asked, “I thought you wanted to mess around with the snow.”

“I will. But this is warm enough.”

“It really isn’t,” Jason argued, “Leo, you’re gonna get sick.”

Leo waved his hand around nonchalantly, “We’re on vacation, who cares.”

“I care.” Piper intercepted and then realized that it might sound a bit too sincere and decided to follow it up with something less heavy, “You get so whiny when you’re sick, I don’t want to deal with that. Besides, who’ll cook for me when you’re sick?”

“I won’t get sick.” Leo insisted.

“You wanna bet?”

Jason sighed loudly next to them and moved to unwrap Piper’s scarf, shoving it on Leo instead (though not without a lot of fighting on Leo’s part), “You are absolutely not going to bet on it. Leo, wear the scarf and don’t be an idiot, please. I really don’t want you to get sick while we’re on vacation.”

“So, any other day of the year is fine then?”

“You know what I mean.”

“Do I though?”

Jason sighed even deeper than before and Piper suppressed the urge to laugh at him. Watching him deal with Leo’s antics was almost as funny as forcing Jason to deal with hers. She smiled and leaned in closer to Leo, trying very hard to ignore how cute he looked wearing her scarf, and whispered to him, “What do you say we ruin him?” 

She didn’t mean for it to sound sexual but if the way Leo snorted at the suggestion and wiggled his eyebrows it must have come out a lot hornier than she’d meant to. Oh, well, it was up to him to interpret. And who was she to keep him from dirty thoughts when she was having the very same ones anyway.

Leo kneeled down and ran his hands through the snow, childlike wonder in his eyes as he watched it slowly melt in his too hot hands. He frowned when the snow turned into water and Piper suppressed a fond smile. Leo didn’t let it bother him for long, because not even two seconds later he was throwing snow at Jason. 

Jason spluttered and threw his hands up in an attempt to keep the snow from getting on his glasses, but all attempts were futile when Leo moved close to him, grabbed him by the coat and shoved a handful of half melted snow down Jason’s turtleneck. Piper could see Jason short-circuit at the close proximity, his cheeks red and not from the cold. Jason barely had time to recover before Leo was back to running around excitedly, throwing snowballs at him. One in particular seemed to hit harder than expected. Jason winced as it hit him, whining and falling down on the snow-covered deck in faux pain. He clutched his shoulder and dramatically screamed in agony. Piper ran to his side, laughing and giggling at the display. Leo was right by their side as well, hands on his hips and a mean smile on his face.

“You gotta keep up man,” Leo said nonchalantly, “This really doesn’t fit your superman image. Getting beaten by a lowlife mechanic and all that. Not very hero-like if you ask me.”

Jason pouted and looked up at him, “How dare you mock my pain?” He asked in an exaggerated accent. Piper didn’t know what accent it was meant to be but it surely wasn’t American. 

“Aw, are you hurt?”

“Can’t you tell?” Jason retorted.

Piper snorted, “I think you need to kiss his bruises better,” She said, “Otherwise he’ll never recover.”

Jason whipped his head around to her, a panicked look on his face, ears red and eyes wide, “I— What?”

“Hm, I suppose that might be doable.” Leo said, “What do you think Nurse Pipes, does one kiss suffice?”

Piper shook her head, enjoying the idea more and more, “No, I think given the severity at least five kisses are needed.”

“You’re absolutely right. No less than five kisses will be enough to fix this hurt.”

Jason whined loudly and shrieked in fear as Leo dropped to his knees to be on the same level. He sent Jason one big, mean smile before leaning down, pulling off Jason’s coat and pressing over exaggerated kiss after kiss to his biceps. With every kiss he made loud ridiculous smacking noises, completely ignoring Jason’s panic. Piper knew that Jason would hate her for this, but really, he should be thankful. She sneakily pulled her phone from her pocket and started recording the whole spectacle to be sent to the group chat later. They’d kill her if she left this undocumented. Not to mention that she’d probably re-watch it later whenever she felt down. 

Leo let go of Jason’s arm and smiled triumphantly, “Well, Nurse I’d say the procedure was a full success.” He directed his attention back to Jason, “How do you feel patient Zero?”

“Oh is being hit by one of your snowballs an epidemic now?”

“Sure it is. Everything can be an epidemic.”

Jason shook his head fondly and got back to his feet, “I think you need to retake a few high school biology courses.”

“Do you doubt my medical knowledge?” Leo challenged.

Jason held up his hands in mock defeat, “No, not at all, I’m just saying it could be improved on by a lot.”

With a loud ‘Oi’ and a quick snowball thrown at Jason’s face, the two collapsed into a fit of laughter and snow. Piper watched; her phone now safely tucked back in her pocket. She wasn’t in the mood to read the messages the others would surely send, probably offended that Jason and Piper got the first sort of date.

“Leo,” She called out and the latter stopped momentarily to give her his attention, though he didn’t stop messing with the half melted, half frozen over snowball in his hand, “Where do you wanna go first when we get to Prague?”

So, sue Piper for wanting to get a head start. If she already knew what kind of stuff he’d want to see, planning totally-not-dates-but-actually-dates would be a lot easier. Besides, it was in Leo’s best interest. No selfish thoughts to be seen, so sir.

“I told you already,” he answered, a confused expression taking over his face, “The black light theater.”

“Yeah, but other than that, I mean. We’ll be there for like two whole weeks. Isn’t there anything you want to see?”

“Oh. Well, I mean I’ve never thought about it. Until you guys mentioned it I never even considered that we’d go to Prague, so I guess I don’t really know where I’d wanna go.”

“Nothing at all? Not even like a museum or a park or something?” Jason asked, equally as desperate to know as Piper.

“To be honest I’m more concerned with what we’ll do about the Argo II.”

“What do you mean?” Piper asked. She moved to lean on the railing, Leo and Jason joining her quickly.

“The last two stops we did were both at the beach, right?” Leo started, “There we just docked the Argo, had our fun all day and then went back to the ship at night. But when we’re going to a city I wouldn’t know where to leave the Argo or what to do with it.”

“I never thought about that.” Piper mumbled, “I guess we can find a different place to go to. Maybe another beach or something.”

“No, no, I want to go to Prague. I’m just worrying about my baby, you know. I’m sure we’ll figure it out.”

“Maybe we could find a spot in the woods or something to leave the Argo.”

“But what if someone finds it? I’ll literally murder anyone who touches my baby.”  
Jason snorted, “Relax. We can ask Hazel to mask it with the mist. She’s been getting better at it.”

“But—”

“It’ll be fine Leo,” Piper reassured, “I promise. We’ll figure it all out.”

“But where will we sleep if not the Argo? I’m not sleeping on park benches again.”

Piper decided not to focus on that last part of his sentence, not right now at least. She was definitely going to bring it up in the future soon. There was still so much she didn’t know about Leo and fuck if she wasn’t going to find out everything she could. But for now she had more pressing issues to work with.

“Have you ever considered that hotels exist?”

Leo looked at her strangely, “Pipes, we’re all fucking broke with what money would we pay for that?”

Piper feigned an offended gasp, “How dare you call me broke?” She hated taking about her wealth, even more so knowing that most of her friends were born into and living in less than fortunate situations but now it came in handy, 

“I have plenty of money to get us a nice hotel for two weeks. And even if I didn’t, I’m sure Chiron would fork over some cash if we pushed and begged enough.”

“I’m not begging him for money and I’m also not accepting your pity money either. That’s dumb.”

“Of course not,” Piper agreed, “That’s why Annabeth would do the begging, Chiron has a soft spot for her, and you wouldn’t be accepting my money, it’d be my dad paying for it. For all of us. Not just you, not just me or Jason, but all of us. It’s always all of us together.”

Leo frowned, seemingly mulling it over before finally coming to a conclusion, “Fine, but you’re picking to hotel and if it’s too fancy I’m not letting you pay for anything else this entire trip.”

Piper snorted and shoved his shoulder with hers, “As if you’d let me pay for anything in the first place.”

“Damn right, I’m a strong independent man who don’t need no woman.”

“Clearly you do, seeing as you wouldn’t even wear a scarf on your own.” Jason mumbled.

Leo feigned offence and grasped at the space over his heart, “You wound me! I was coerced! Forced even! How dare you insinuate I was not dressed appropriately!”

Jason gave him a once over, “I’m not insinuating, I’m stating a fact. You look like it’s summer and it’s thirty degrees out, not negative ten.”

“Tomato, Tomato, who cares. Thirty or negative ten is all the same in the end.” Leo proclaimed in an overexaggerated British accent.

The three of them fell into another fit of laughter and Piper felt like she was on cloud nine, standing with her two-favorite people on the planet, laughing at dumb jokes. Nothing could make this any better. Almost nothing at least. Leo’s hand in hers could definitely improve the situation but there was still time. Piper wasn’t going to rush it. Patience was of the essence or some shit like that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you tell I've been watching a lot of K-Dramas?
> 
> Anyway I just wanted to say that I hate the depictions of Piper where she's like "hurr burr I hate fashion and girly things I'm such a tomboiiii" you know which ones I mean? it just bothers me how people act like liking fashion and girly things makes you weak and not cool when you can look nice and take care of your appearance and still kick ass like come on it's 2020, almost 2021 can we forget about this dumbass idea that girls who care about what they look like are shallow and weak? K thanks because I think fashion can not just be fun but also like a shield for many people so I wanted to include that let me know what you think about the way I wrote her and everyone else because I haven't read the books in a while lmao
> 
> anyway would y'all be interested in mayhaps adding Nico to the mix??? because I think it'd be hella funny ngl hahaha
> 
> so yeah enough with that
> 
> thank you so so so so much to everyone who read this and commented and gave me kudos you guys deserve the world and I love you so much and I appreciate every single one of you, you guys are loved and known don't ever doubt that k thanks if you ever doubt yourself I will personally come to your house and scream compliments at you do not test me
> 
> That's all for this time, hydrate or diedrate lads, stay safe, stay home if you can, don't get sick, wash your hands and most importantly be nice to yourself ily <333


	3. Love me or leave me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title from 'love me or leave me' by little mix
> 
> *Hands you this*: Annabeth and Leo bonding 
> 
> this got a little angsty so be aware of that but there's much comfort so dw this is v fluffy
> 
> also holy shit???? 450 hits???? Bitch what???? I am shooketh I did not think anyone would read this lmao thanks to everyone who has this is insane I'm so happy lmaooo
> 
> anyways have fun I have you like it <333

Annabeth moved the laptop a bit so she could see better. Not to get Leo to lean closer to her and maybe lean on her shoulder. No, only so she could inspect the hotel in front of them better. 

Piper had come to her the day before, late at night, telling her they needed to find a good, proper hotel and that she’d pay for all of it as long as it was expensive and fancy. Annabeth had been confused until Piper had explained to her that Leo was worried. Worried over where they’d stay and how it would influence their trip.  
Annabeth had gotten up extra early the next morning and skipped breakfast in favor of sifting through piles and piles of Czech Hotels. A hostel had been out of the question and motels, apparently weren’t a thing in Europe, so she’d taken extra care to go through the pages upon pages of foreign looking buildings. They were all pretty. All old, colorful houses with extravagantly decorated windows and fancy doors. She’d been hesitant at first. Piper may have said that price wasn’t an issue, but Annabeth really hadn’t wanted to pick something that would be way out of range. Then Piper had walked by, rolled her eyes, grabbed the laptop and set the price range a couple hundred dollars higher. Annabeth had had half a mind to tell her off but deep down she really wanted a nice and proper hotel too. Not only for her but for all of them. Leo had designed their cabins on the Argo II to be as comfortable as possible, but he could only do so much and a big comfortable bed in a big hotel sounded a lot more comfortable than a bunk on a flying ship. Not that she’d ever say that to Leo’s face, or aloud. A few years ago, she might have. Might have even told him to do better. But not now. Not anymore. Now the thought of telling Leo that something he’d spent days and weeks on, just for them, personalizing their cabins and taking extra care to provide everyone with everything they might need, made her sick to her stomach. Of course, she thought that he could do better, that together they could make the Argo II even more fantastical, but she wouldn’t say it, not unless he asked first.

Leo had come to join her sometime after eleven in the morning, hair mussed and a yawn forming on his lips. He’d dropped into the loveseat across from Annabeth and whined until Hazel rolled her eyes and made him a cup of coffee. He’d smiled at her and then sighed happily into his drink before downing it in one go. Leo being so far away hadn’t sat right with Annabeth at all. Especially when everyone else left and the two of them were left in the room alone, awkwardly pretending the other wasn’t there. Except for Annabeth pretending was a lot harder, when Leo just had to look the way he did. So after almost half an hour of uncomfortable silence, Annabeth had beckoned him over under the pretense of looking at hotels. She picked out a few she’d liked best and conveniently claimed to not know exactly how much each cost per night, as the exchange rate was strange (it was complete bullshit, Annabeth had full knowledge over how much each hotel cost per night, she’d even made sure to memorize the exchange rate of Dollar to Czech Crowns). 

Now she was stuck trying not to die every time Leo would lean a little closer, shift a little more and carve his space deeper in her heart. Her hands shook as she made the adjustments to their rooms and stay on each site. When Leo asked, she simply told him she’d had too much coffee. Leo had nodded and Annabeth had breathed a sigh of relief at knowing that Leo was too used to the constant all-nighters and coffee runs to not know the trembling of hands in the morning.  
“That one looks hella expensive though,” Leo mumbled as he pointed at her screen. He was sat a safe distance away from her, only moving when needed but Annabeth swore, she could feel every breath on her skin. 

The hotel in question was located in Prague center, close to the river, right next to the American embassy and only a ten-minute walk away from Prague Castle, a place Annabeth would definitely have to visit more than once. The hotel was pretty, and Annabeth couldn’t lie, it was definitely her favorite among all the ones they’d looked at. The pastel yellow walls and pinkish stucco decorating them had her architect heart beating faster than it had any right to. Add to that the murals painted in many of the rooms and the beautifully rococo furniture and she’d been sold. Unfortunately, Leo had been right. Their cheapest rooms started at $430 per night and Annabeth didn’t need to look to know that their nicer rooms would cost them a fortune. Not to mention that there were seven of them, therefore there needed to be four rooms at least and by the time Annabeth had started calculating the cost in her head she’d wanted to cry and look for a cheaper hotel. But the pretty stucco and nice view of the city hadn’t let her go. She wanted only the best for her friends.

“It’s not that expensive actually,” She lied, “I’m sure we’d be fine. And it’s in the city center so it’d be easier to get about anyway.”

“But who will pay for it?”

“Piper—”

Leo shook his head and frowned, “I don’t want Pipes paying for it.”

“But it’s easiest. She offered and it’d be a great opportunity.”

“I know but she shouldn’t be paying for seven people staying at a massively expensive hotel for two whole weeks when we can just stay in the Argo II.”

“The ship won’t be able to land in the city. We’d have to spend hours every day just to get in and out of the city.” Annabeth argued, the laptop long forgotten, “It’s way easier if we leave it away from the city and then stay the two weeks in town.”

“We can’t just leave it! What if someone finds it?”

Annabeth looked at him like he was stupid, “Hazel will mask it with the mist. No one will find it.”

“But I can’t leave Festus alone for so long! And who will make sure that everything’s working fine and that—”

“Leo what is this really about?” She asked, “Festus can stay by himself for a bit and while we’re not using the ship you don’t need to check on it. So, what’s the actual problem here?” She knew it came out blunter than intended and fuck she knew she had a tendency to do that, but she couldn’t help herself. She needed to know right  
now what was going on.

“There’s no bigger issue I’m just worried about the ship, is all.”

“Leo—”

“No seriously, I’m fine. I just don’t want to leave my ship where someone else could find it,” He said, and Annabeth knew that look on his face. That look that said ‘I’m scared and I’m not going to stay here much longer’ the one she’d had on her face the night she’d run away, that look that told her he wanted to leave, that he felt too vulnerable with someone he didn’t think would listen. And fuck it hurt. Knowing subconsciously that Leo didn’t trust Annabeth was completely different than seeing it written so clearly on his face. She needed to fix it. Right now, before the idea that she didn’t care took root in his head permanently.

“Leo, listen to me.” She said carefully, “I get it. It’s fine. You don’t have to tell me; I know we’re not the best of friends and we barely really talk to each other, but I get it. Whatever it is you’re afraid of I’ve felt it and I know that I may not be able to fix it, but I can at least listen and do my best to accommodate it.”

“No, you don’t.” He insisted, voice uncharacteristically weak, “None of you would get it.”

“Try me.”

“Annabeth, really it’s fine.”

“No, I mean it. Try me.” She said, turning her body toward him fully, eyes focused somewhere on his face, “I’m willing to bet I understand how you feel.”  
He laughed humorlessly and shook his head, “It’s fine. We can stay in the hotel and I’ll pick whatever room is cheapest.”

“What? Why?”

“What else would I do?” He asked, “You and Percy are gonna room together, you guys deserve the nicest room for all you did for us. Pipes and Jace are going to room together obviously and Piper will go all out. And Haz and Frank will room together. That’ll leave me and because I’m alone I’ll just pick whatever room his cheapest and furthest away, so I don’t have to hear you guys fucking every night.”

There was so much Annabeth wanted to argue with. Yes of course the couples would room together but that didn’t mean Leo had to be alone. She’d be more than happy to ask the hotel to put another mattress in one of their rooms so Leo wouldn’t have to be alone in an unfamiliar place. Hades, she’d even be delighted to have Leo room with her and Percy. And even if he didn’t room with any of them, he deserved the most expensive room there was. A full suit with a city view and a big bathroom and an even bigger bed. He’d built their ship, sacrificed himself and fixed them in so many ways he didn’t even understand. To Annabeth, and anyone else on the ship, it was obvious that Leo deserved the biggest most pompous room. Still that room shouldn’t be far away from theirs. If it were up to Annabeth she’d have his room be smack dab in the middle, surrounded by all of their rooms. Leo at the center of the universe where he belonged.  
But she didn’t say any of that. Didn’t think she’d have the courage to or that it’d be well received if she did. Instead, she eyed him curiously and moved a bit closer on the sofa until their knees were almost touching. She didn’t let the way Leo flinched at their proximity discourage her.

“Leo,” She said slowly, “What is this about?”

“Nothing—”

“Don’t lie to me.” She tried again, “You don’t have to tell me everything and if you don’t want to tell me at all that’s alright, I won’t push but I want you to understand that all of us are here to listen if you need us to. All of us. But don’t— Don’t lie to me, to us. If you don’t want to tell us that’s okay, but don’t lie. If you tell me right now that you’re uncomfortable in a hotel or with this vacation, we’ll call the whole thing off and go somewhere else. It’s completely up to you. Just be honest with us.”

Leo watched her, his eyes flicking from hers to her nose to her hair and back to her face. Eye contact was hard for all of them but for Leo it always seemed a bit harder. Over the years Annabeth had taught herself to look more, to look at least close to the eyes because she’d been forced to. Her stepmom had insisted on eye contact at dinner. But Leo had clearly never been forced into the habit. His eyes moved about and around like he wasn’t sure what to look at. They settled on the projection of Camp behind Annabeth. 

“You’ve run away.” He said more than asked, voice kind of unsure, “Do you ever feel that itch in your hands? That itch in your feet to move, to run?” His eyes moved to her for a split second then back to the table, “Like if you don’t run right now something terrible will happen? That the itch in your hands will take over and you won’t ever feel okay?”

Annabeth knew it wasn’t a real question, “Do you mean the ADHD?” She asked. She had to be sure that they were on the same page.  
Leo laughed nervously and shook his head. His hands shook and Annabeth wanted nothing more than to hold onto them and tell him it’d be okay. That he had all of them to look to. But in a way she thought that may be the problem.

“It feels too permanent, doesn’t it?” She asked. 

His head snapped up to her, “How do you—”

“Because I know the feeling. I told you I’d understand.” She told him, “You feel like this will all come crashing down if you let yourself enjoy it, don’t you? Being on the Argo feels fleeting enough, doesn’t it? We’re travelling and constantly moving, and you never have to settle down so it’s fine. At camp, well it’s a summer camp and even if we stay all year we can pretend it’s not permanent, that we can leave any time. But now it’s different. Now we’re talking about staying in a hotel, actually settling down for a couple weeks and it feels wrong.”

“It’ll all go wrong.” He mumbled, “I know it will. I’ll move into the room and I’ll wake up and you guys will be gone, and I’ll be alone again, and I know it. I just know it.”

“How do you know?”

“Because it’s how it goes. Annabeth you know that’s how it goes. The moment you put down your jacket somewhere someone leaves and it’s time to go again. People like us we don’t get to settle down.”

“But this is different.”

“It’s always the same.” He finally looked at her and Annabeth hadn’t seen that much hurt in someone since she watched Nico drop them into Tartarus. She needed to wipe that hurt off his face. To hold him and reassure him that nobody would be going anywhere. But that wasn’t the type of relationship they had. Not the two of them. Piper and Jason may be allowed to hold him like a precious gem to be cherished and held dear, but Annabeth and Leo didn’t work like that. It was always work and hard facts and silent gestures. A cup of coffee after a long night planning or a blanket thrown over the other late at night. They’re weren’t loud but Gods Annabeth wanted them to be. She wanted to show the whole world how amazing Leo was and still hold him close and keep him safe. She wanted to prove to the world how brilliant Leo was.

“But we’re not like everyone else.” She finally said, testing the words as they left her mouth, careful with what she said, “We all have our own fair share of trauma and abandonment issues by proxy of our parents already. We’re a family. We stick together. I’ll swear on the river Styx that you’re never gonna wake up to find us all abandoning you. We won’t ever leave.”

“Don’t swear on the river Styx. That never ends well.”  
She looked at him as best as she could, willing herself to keep still and make sure Leo understood every single word, “Leo, I swear on the river Styx that we won’t ever abandon you. Never again will you have to be alone. I promise.”

“You don’t know whether that will actually work.”  
Annabeth smiled, “I can do my best to damn well make it work. We’re a family and I’m not letting one of us be all alone in this.”  
Leo was about to say something, probably something self-loathing or questioning so she shoved him a bit, trying to go back to the way they always were and opened her laptop again forcing Leo to focus his attention on it again. The screen lit up and she typed in her password before the websites from earlier pulled up again. She quickly clicked on the one they’d been talking about before and nudged Leo a little to get him to say something.

“This one has really nice rococo and renaissance style architecture mixed together I think it’d definitely be worth the stay.”  
Leo hesitated for a second but took the bait and shuffled a little closer to get a better look this time, “But we won’t be spending a lot of time there so why get a fancy one?”

Annabeth smiled mischievously at him and stage-whispered, “Because Piper’s paying so we should make the most of it while we can.”  
It was a joke, both of them knew but deep-down Annabeth meant it. If Piper was keen on pampering all of them (mostly Leo and Jason but still) then Annabeth was going to take advantage of it while she could. 

They spent the rest of the day looking at hotels, a little awkwardly but Leo seemed a little more at peace by the end of it. They settled on that hotel they’d both liked, The Alchemyst Hotel, and Annabeth had promised to go to Piper first thing tomorrow and get it booked. They’d agreed to get four rooms, one for each couple and an extra one for Leo. All rooms would be suits but Annabeth hadn’t let Leo pick which suits. She’d told him that she’d figure it out with Piper. 

Annabeth sat in her bed later that evening, her phone the only thing illuminating the room. Percy was in his rom room having said he’d call his little sister to check up on her and that he dind’t want to disturb Annabeth. That had been a while ago. Now the only thing on Annabeth’s mind of Leo and the things she’d said.  
Her fingers moved across the screen and hovered over the green messenger app, before she pressed down, and the screen went white. She opened their group-chat without Leo, the one titled ‘Leo is hot self-help group’ (Percy picked the name) and began typing out a message. 

**Wise girl:**  
@Everyone listen, we need to talk about Leo.

Not even two seconds after she sent the message, she saw everyone coming online and typing simultaneously. She knew full well that everyone had on notifications and their ringtone for this chat.

 **Group Mom:**  
What’s wrong? Did something happen?

 **Wise Girl:**  
No, I just talked to Leo earlier and he said some things that we need to talk about.

 **Beauty Queen✨:**  
You’re not doing anything to make me worry less  
Ahsadfhasfa  
What’d he say?????

 **Wise Girl:**  
Where are the others?

 **Peter Johnson:**  
Lurking  
Now spill

 **Wise Girl:**  
Alright  
Leo told me earlier that he’s worried we’re all going to leave again and that we’ll abandon him.  
He said he’d get the cheapest room at the hotel and some other depressing stuff.  
I told him that we wouldn’t do that and that we’ll always listen, and I swore on the river styx that we wouldn’t abandon him.

 **Arrow boi:**  
You did what now  
Why would you swear on the river styx?  
That’s dangerous

 **Wise Girl:**  
Because I meant what I said, and I stand by my promise.  
Now more importantly we need to fix this.

 **Peter Johnson:**  
But how’re we supposed to do that  
Leo doesn’t really let anyone closer than arm’s length and even Piper and Jason don’t get to know everything

 **Superman:**  
Percy’s right guys  
We tried talking to Leo to tell him that he can always just share our room or that he can come whenever he needs but he just brushed it off

 **Beauty Queen✨:**  
I hate to say this  
But  
There’s no way we can convince leo that it’s genuine  
He won’t believe it  
He never does  
All we can do is appreciate and love him and wait for him to figure it out

 **Group Mom:**  
What if  
And now hear me out  
What if we book one room less?  
Like if we book three  
One for each couple and then Leo has to conveniently share rooms with us

 **Wise girl:**  
But won’t he just think that we forgot to even book him a room and feel more left out?

 **Group Mom:**  
Booking error  
Or there were only three rooms available for those two weeks  
Or something idk whatever

 **Peter Johnson:**  
What if hes not comfortable with that tho  
Like if he thinks its weird and then he feels bad 

**Beauty Queen✨:**  
Sharing with us isn’t new to him so at the very least he should be fine with us  
And if he rly hates it we can just book another room when we’re there  
Problem solved  
Leo's loved and everyone’s happy that they get to share with leo

 **Superman:**  
I don’t know if I like this plan

 **Group Mom:**  
Do you have a better idea? 

**Superman:**  
…  
No

 **Wise Girl:**  
So, it’s settled.  
Piper and I will book the rooms tomorrow and everyone else put effort into showing Leo we won’t leave.  
Everyone okay with that?

 **Peter Johnson:**  
Yeah 

**Group Mom:**  
Yes

 **Arrow Boi:**  
I don’t think it’s a good idea but alright I’m in

 **Superman:**  
I’m with Frank

 **Beauty Queen✨:**  
Come to my room now annie we’ll get the rooms now  
I’m still awake  
Jace is out on the deck working out anyway  
We can have some fun😏

 **Wise Girl:**  
I hate you

 **Beauty Queen✨:**  
😘😘😘

Annabeth shut off her phone and tossed it on the bed before getting up and going to knock on Piper’s door across the hall. The door opened instantly, and Annabeth was greeted by the sight of Piper wearing only a tank top and shorts, her hair in a loose braid. She was clearly lounging in bed, probably messing around on her phone before Annabeth knocked. Annabeth didn’t want to think about why her heart did a small summersault at the sight. She was probably just nervous about getting the rooms and going through with their plan.

Piper opened the door further and let Annabeth in, instantly dropping on the bed after closing the door behind her. Her top moved up a bit and Annabeth didn’t let herself look. She sat next to Piper on the bed and watched as Piper pulled open her laptop, entered the password and opened the website of the Alchemyst Hotel.

“We’re getting big rooms, right?” Piper asked.

“You’re the one paying, it’s up to you.”

Piper hummed and nodded, “Alright, well we’re getting suits because I say so. I think we should all get the same. Otherwise, it’s not fair.”

“Sure. What about that one?” Annabeth asked. She pointed at a middle priced one. It wasn’t the cheapest suit, but it also wasn’t too expensive like the others. Piper clicked on it, read through the description and clicked through the photos before nodding and going to fill out how many rooms they’d need for how long.

“What if he doesn’t like us?” Annabeth asked after a while. She tried to sound as unbothered as possible, voice even and collected, “This whole plan is useless then.”

Piper didn’t look away from typing her credit card information into the website, “He likes us. I’ve known him long enough to know.”

“Yeah he likes you guys, but I’m a different story.”

“No, you’re not. You’re part of this just likes us.”

“I’m not saying I’m worth less to him,” Annabeth clarified, she really didn’t mean it like that, she was just trying to be realistic, “He and I barely talk.”

“But he told you what he was thinking. You were the one he told, that he wants to run.”

“Because I asked him.”

“Exactly.” Piper said, finally looking up, “You ask. I don’t ask, I just hold him and tell him it’s okay. Jason smiles and helps him with anything he needs but he doesn’t ask. No one asks. You do. You ask me whether I’m okay when I’m tired and you ask when Percy seems down. You always ask. It’s what you do and it’s your way of helping all of us. Quit always selling yourself short.”

“But I’m not good with emotions. I don’t know how to answer when he’s emotional.”

“You did fine today.” Piper argued, “He hasn’t left yet, and he joked around at dinner like usual and he didn’t ignore you. Clearly you did fine.”

“I just wonder sometimes whether it’s a good idea that I’m part of this. Maybe it’d be better if I just shoved my feelings down and moved on. I have Percy already. I shouldn’t be so greedy.”

“That’s bullshit and you know it. We’re all greedy. I have Jason and I still want my best friend. Wanting Leo isn’t bad. We all agreed on that. And you have every right to be here, just like us. It wouldn’t be the same without you. I wouldn’t want this if it singled you out.”

“Oh.” Was all Annabeth could say. She let herself fall down backward until her back hit the soft sheets and she was staring at the ceiling. She moved the words around in her head until the made sense. Piper wanted her here. Everyone wanted her here. She wasn’t an intrusion, and she was wanted and needed. It was okay for her to be here.

She finally found the words again, probably way to long after Piper had spoken, and Piper was probably not even listening anymore, but Annabeth needed her to know. Needed her to understand that it was mutual.

“I wouldn’t want this without you either.”

She didn’t think Piper heard or even paid attention to her anymore. She figured Piper was too busy already finding cool places to hang out at in Prague, so when the bed dipped, and Annabeth felt Piper’s hand in hers she had to stop herself from tensing. Physical affection wasn’t strange for any of them, but Annabeth didn’t do it much to anyone besides Percy. She’d never had the urge. But over time it had just sort of happened. Percy would throw his arms around Jason in a mock headlock and Piper would slap Hazel’s butt as a joke to get her to walk faster. Still, Annabeth didn’t do it much. It’s not that she hated it. It was more that she’d simply never had friends that were close enough to consider physical affection with. 

Her hands felt sweaty and she wondered whether it bothered Piper. If it did, she didn’t say anything.

“Good.” Piper said after a while, “It would’ve been really awkward otherwise.”

Annabeth laughed a bit, not knowing what else to say in answer.

“Do you want to stay over tonight? I’ll tell Jason to stay in Jason’s room. We can have a girls night.” Piper asked.

“With Hazel?”

Piper thought for a second, then her smile widened, “With Hazel. We haven’t had a proper girls night in a long time.”

“We’ve never had one.”

“Then let’s start now.” Piper squeezed her hand and moved a bit closer, “We can watch dumb romcoms and pain each other’s nails and listen to music and stay up way too long and talk about past crushes. All that girly stuff.”

“I’ve never had a sleepover with girls. Or any friends.” Annabeth admitted.  
Piper smiled wider and turned her head to look at Annabeth, “Me neither. And I bet neither has Hazel. We can figure it out together.”

“Yeah.” Annabeth said, her voice a little breathier than intended, “We can do that. We should text the group chat as well.”

Piper nodded and grabbed her phone, opening the group chat (with Leo) named ‘Area 51’ and typed out a message with one hand. Annabeth leaned closer to see, she’d left her phone in her room earlier. She’d have to get it later so they could have a proper sleep over and she’d need to get clothes and change too but for now this was enough.

 **Beauty queen✨:**  
Listen up sluts  
@everyone  
We’re having a certified girls night tonight  
So  
Boys gtf and figure out where you wanna sleep idc just don’t come in my room  
Hazel get your beautiful ass in my room  
We’re staying up until we die

 **Peter Johnson:**  
Sick  
Jace I’m sleeping in your room tonight  
If the girls are doing girls night we’re doing a bois night lads  
@Repair Boy  
Idk where you are but you’re coming too  
Bring snacks if you pass the kitchen  
K thx

 **Group Mom:**  
Oh! Are we having a sleep over???  
I’ve never had a sleep over!  
I can’t wait  
I’ll be right there

 **Arrow boi:**  
Do I get to join a sleep over as well or…?

 **Peter Johnson:**  
Are you dense  
Ofc you’re joining us  
Get your ass to my room right tf now  
Tf did you think we’d just leave you

 **Arrow boi:**  
Idk what you guys do  
Actually I don’t know if I even want to be involved in your sleep over  
I might like the girls’ better

 **Beauty Queen✨:**  
Too bad  
It’s a GIRLS night and youre not a girl so👀  
Go to your dirty cheap boys night  
Our sleepover will be way better than yours ✨✨  
Peter Johnson:  
Ha  
As if  
Ours is gonna be iconic  
We’re gonna watch Nemo and the lion king  
Beat that

 **Superman:**  
We are?

 **Peter Johnson:**  
Yes, Jason, we are

 **Beauty Queen✨:**  
We’re gonna eat and watch romcoms and talk about crushes and we’re gonna have sexy pillow fights

 **Peter Johnson:**  
But nemo

 **Beauty Queen✨:**  
But sexy pillow fights

 **Repair Boy:**  
jkdskdsaklfgakdgajkld  
wtf is going on  
Just got out of the shower  
Somebody tell me whats happening

 **Group Mom:**  
Leo!!!  
You’re here!

 **Repair boy:**  
Yeah idk if I want to be  
Wtf are you arguing about anyway

 **Arrow boi:**  
tl:dr  
the girls kicked us out their rooms because they’re having a movie night  
Percy decided we’re having a boys night now  
Piper and Percy are arguing over which will be better  
Percy promised nemo and the lion king  
Piper promised sexy pillow fights and crush gossip  
None of us have ever had a normal sleep over  
Youre welcome

 **Repair boy:**  
Wow  
Okay  
I leave you alone for ten minutes and this is what happens  
What would you do without me lmao  
I gotta say tho  
Percy’s party sounds hella fun ngl

 **Peter Johnson:**  
HA TAKE THAT BITCH I WON

 **Beauty Queen✨:**  
YOU DID NOT WIN  
@repair boy YOU WHORE I THOUGHT YOU LVOED ME😤😤

 **Repair boy:**  
I do  
But  
Nemo dude

 **Beauty Queen✨:**  
😢😣😫😭

 **Repair boy:**  
I love you too

Piper huffed and threw the phone across the room and squealed. Her hand gripped Annabeth’s tighter. 

“He said he loves me.”

“it was a joke though.” Annabeth said.

Piper shook her head, “Doesn’t matter. We’re making our sleepover the best fucking sleep over in the whole fucking world and we’re gonna post the best pictures on insta and everyone will be jealous, and the boys will have fucking wished they’d have been here.”  
Annabeth couldn’t help but laugh. 

“Sure, whatever you want.”

The ship didn’t get to be quiet that night. Annabeth’s heart swelled at the knowledge that everyone was content and loved. The ship brimmed with love and Annabeth couldn’t have been happier.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hewwow lads lmao I'm sorry 
> 
> so yeah I'm backkkkkk yaaay I hope I was missed
> 
> anyway welcome back or like welcome if you're reading this all in one go I hope you enjoy your stay
> 
> I hope you're all doing well and enjoying the holidays and staying hydrated and healthy!!! I will not accept any negativity and sadness here so y'all better cheer the tf up
> 
> soooo thank you to everyone who comments and gives me kudos it is my life's blood ngl it makes me v happy k thx 
> 
> if you wanna talk to me (please do I want friends I need people to yell about pjo and stuff to) consider checking out my instagram I mostly post art there and I started using it again recently so like >-< id be v happy if some of you came to talk or to check out my arttttt
> 
> My Instagram  
> @weasel_marquis 
> 
> I'm working on getting my Tumblr fixed but until then feel free to come talk on my insta I'm happy about anyone who wants to hang out or just say hi!!! ❤️
> 
> also do y'all wanna see the sleepovers or just skip right to when they arrive in Prague? if yes which sleepover do you wanna see? just the girls or just the boys? or both??? let me know thanks ^^


	4. Sour Patch Kids

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys' sleepover

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Discussions of past non-con/rape of a minor, child abuse, death, anxiety, PTSD
> 
> If you feel like you can't read this/don't feel comfortable reading it but still want to continue with the story, feel free to let me know in the comments and I'll give you a TW free rundown of what happens in the chapter so you won't have to read it :)

“So, I’ll assume that none of you have ever had a proper sleepover?” Frank asked, standing in the entrance to the kitchen where the rest of the boys were rummaging around trying to find snacks. Percy shot him a look and rolled his eyes,

“Do you actually want an answer to that?”

“You’re right. I don’t.” He answered, shaking his head, “We really don’t need all those snacks though, guys. That’s way too much.”

“Gods, Frank, live a little,” Leo told him, and really, how could Frank argue with that? “How often do we get the chance to just chill and do whatever?”

“Literally this entire vacation?”

“And other than that?”

Frank scrunched his face up and Leo laughed, shaking his head fondly. He pushed off the counter he’d been perching on and stumbled his way toward Frank, holding on to two bags of chips and a can of Red Bull, “Face it, Frankie, you need to learn how to unwind a bit. You’re too uptight for your own good.”

He pushed past Frank after giving him a soft pat on the shoulder, Jason and Percy following behind. Frank stayed staring at the wall for a second longer, trying to decipher how to deal with the rest of the evening, when one short shoulder pat left him feeling like pudding. Maybe he should’ve begged the girls to join their sleepover instead. Then he wouldn’t have to deal with Leo and his fragile heart. But then he also wouldn’t get to see Leo smiling, giggling, and laughing, and really Frank wouldn’t give that up for the world. So, he took one last deep breath before turning heel and following the other boys to Percy’s room.

Percy’s room was the biggest. Leo had said it wasn’t intentional originally, that one room had simply ended up being a bit bigger than the others, that he’d originally figured that the room should belong to Jason. But then Percy had been named unofficial Leader of The Seven, and after that everyone had simply decided that Percy would get the big room. Frank couldn’t say he minded. He liked his small, cozy room next to Hazel’s. It was comfortable, familiar.

“Okay so, I vote everyone gets to pick one movie, and then at the end, we watch Nemo. In between, we can like talk and gossip and fuck around or whatever you guys wanna do,” Percy suggested when Frank walked in.

Frank had never actually been in Percy’s room, he realized now. It was strange. He was so used to his own small cabin with one circular window and a bunk bed with a desk underneath and a small dresser, that looking at Percy’s comparatively massive room was strange. The room was, from what Frank remembered his mom telling him about ships when he was younger, the designated Captain’s Cabin. There were windows covering three of the walls, with pretty, red curtains covering them. Frank vaguely remembered Leo once saying that he’d wanted the room to feel properly Pirate-y.

There was a massive bed in toward the left side of the room, with way too many pillows and blankets on it, but at the moment most of them were pulled off and on the floor to the right side of the room where a red sofa and matching carpet were sitting, a TV mounted on the ceiling. Percy pulled it down and Frank had to admit that it was impressive. Leo had really outdone himself with the ship.

Jason was seated comfortably on the sofa, leaning on the armrest, his legs outstretched. Percy was on the floor sitting on a pile of pillows with two blankets. On the other side of the room, Leo was rummaging through Percy’s mini-fridge, stashing the cold drinks for later.  
Jason gestured for Frank to join them and Frank dropped onto the sofa with Jason. He didn’t like sitting on the floor much.

“Isn’t Nemo just your choice though?” Leo asked when he finished putting their drinks away, making his way back to them, “Why is it separate?”

“Because I said so.” Percy argued, “And we’re using my room, so I think it’s fair that I get two picks.”

“But what if I don’t like Nemo?”

Percy let out a scandalized gasp, hand on his heart theatrically, “How could you not like Nemo? You refused sexy pillow fights to watch Nemo with us!”

Leo’s eyes shone in that way that meant nothing but trouble, and Frank was glad he wasn’t on the receiving end this time. Frank blinked and when he opened his eyes again Leo was looking at the ground, eyes shiny with fake tears, hands fidgeting nervously, as he mumbled, “It makes me sad,”

It was obvious that it was just a play, and Frank had a hard time stopping himself from outright laughing at the display, but Jason and Percy seemed to be more convinced. Gods, Frank thought, they really were whipped as cream.

Jason looked vaguely worried, ready to jump in if Leo really did start crying. Frank couldn’t see Percy’s face properly, but judging from the way his hands had frozen in his lap and the goosebumps on his neck, he didn’t seem to like seeing Leo like that either.

“I do wanna watch Nemo though,” Percy started gently, “But if you want you can pick two movies? And we can get extra snacks and stuff for you too. Here I’ll give you my blankets if that helps?”

“Really?” Leo fake-whimpered

“Sure. I don’t want this to suck for you.”

Instantly, Leo dropped the act, lighting up like a supernova, grinning from ear to ear, “Thanks, man. I appreciate it.”

“What?”

Leo just laughed and went to sit down on the sofa between Frank and Jason, but before he could actually do so, Percy grabbed him around the waist and pulled him down on the ground with him, tickling him mercilessly, “You liar! I actually believed you!”

“That’s on you, dude.” Leo said wheezed out between giggles, “I can’t help it if you’re gullible.”

“Gods, and to think I was actually worried about you. You’re a menace.”

“I’ve been told.”

Percy pouted and huffed, letting up on the tickling to instead sulk in his pile of blankets.

“You’re the worst. I was gonna give up Nemo for you.”

Frank had half a mind to get in between the two of them and before they actually ended up killing each other, but watching from the sidelines was equally, if not even more fun. Beside him, Jason seemed more than used to Leo’s antics, barely shaking his head at the display fondly.

“Nu-uh, no take-backs. I get to pick two movies, I get your blanket and extra snacks.” Leo told Percy, “You promised.”

“But you manipulated me!”

Leo shrugged and got up again, moving to the sofa behind them, “Not my fault you’re easy to manipulate.”

“Nope, you’re staying,” Percy argued, holding on to Leo again, “That’s payback. You get that stuff, and I get a seat-buddy in return. Otherwise, no blankets or snacks for you. _And_ I have the remote.”

Frank had to commend him for laying it on so thick and being this obvious. Leo didn’t seem to get the intention behind it. It was almost funny if it wasn’t so sad watching Percy cling to the slightest bit of intimacy from Leo. Out of everyone, Frank knew that he, Percy, and Annabeth got the least contact and love from Leo. It wasn’t bad and it certainly didn’t make them want him any less, it just meant that they had to cherish whatever they got when they did. Really, if Frank had been in Percy’s place, he couldn’t say he wouldn’t have done the same.

“But the floor is uncomfortable,” Leo whined.

Percy rolled his eyes dramatically, “You’re such a princess.”

The next thing any of them knew, Percy was pulling Leo to sit in his lap, nestled under blankets and between blankets, back resting on Percy’s chest. Leo looked tiny caged by Percy’s arms.  
Leo let out a loud shriek, shoulders drawn up to his ears, “What the hell, dude?”

“You said the floor is uncomfortable,” Percy answered as though it was obvious.

He didn’t give Leo any time to answer, turning to Jason instead and asking him what movie he wanted to pick. As expected, Jason picked Captain America: The First Avenger. It garnered whining from Leo about how Iron man is way better and _Why Jason dude I thought you were better than this what did I ever do to you_? Frank didn’t think it’d be smart to inform anyone that he hadn’t seen either movie, so he stayed quiet while Jason and Leo argued. For once, Percy stayed quiet too. He seemed content with holding on to Leo and shoving copious amounts of tiny pretzel snacks into his mouth. His body swayed with every exaggerated wave of Leo’s arms or joke-punch Jason delivered to Leo who hit back. Percy was doing remarkably well, considering he was usually one of the first to jump into any argument, especially about Marvel and when it guaranteed Annabeth’s or Leo’s attention. Now, though simply holding Leo seemed to be enough attention.

Frank couldn’t blame him. He’d be happy too if he got to hold Leo in his lap and cuddle him while watching movies. For once though, Frank found, that looking at Percy cuddling Leo, Frank didn’t feel jealous. He knew fully well that he was usually the most prone to jealousy. Hell, he’d hated Leo for months out of jealousy. And sometimes he still didn’t like that Leo got more attention from Hazel than he did, but it’s slowly changing from actual jealousy and into something else. Frank wasn’t sure what it was. His heart still clenched when Leo hung out with Hazel or Piper or Jason, or anyone of the Seven really, but it’s not the same feeling he got when some camper at Camp Jupiter hits on Hazel. He felt possessive then, a need to make sure that Hazel was with him and no one else, needed to be sure that Hazel liked him best. But that wasn’t what he felt when Leo and hazel talked anymore. Now he just felt left out. Like he wanted to be part of the conversation rather than pull Hazel away from it. Like they were somehow leaving him out for not including him. At first that had been all. It had only been with Hazel. If Hazel and Leo were the ones talking, it was fine. But when either of them was spending time together with or talking to anyone else he’d find himself get jealous, that familiar burn in his throat bubbling up and his hands running cold. But over time, especially this vacation the others started being included too. Frank didn’t get jealous when Jason and Leo hung out. Or when Hazel spent the night talking to Piper instead of falling asleep with Frank. Instead of wishing that it was him talking to Hazel and Leo, he’d started wishing that he were there with them and the other person. That he was there when Leo and Jason went to the movies on their last stop, or when Hazel and Piper when to a horse ranch to go horse riding. Frank didn’t know what to do with that feeling.

Looking at Percy now, he didn’t want to replace Percy, he simply wanted to be there with them. He wanted to have his arm around Leo’s arm while Leo sat in Percy’s lap, with Jason resting his head on Leo’s shoulder.

Percy was resting his chin on Leo’s shoulder, his arms wound tightly around Leo’s waist. Somewhere between the first and second movie (Intouchables, Frank’s choice—" _No Leo it’s not a nerd movie, shut up and watch you’re missing the subtitles”_ ) Leo had stopped squirming and let himself lean back, resting on Percy’s chest completely. The self-satisfied smirk on Percy’s smile at the development hadn’t been too undeserved. Frank figured it was quite a feat to get Leo to sit still properly. In fact, he was sitting so still that the photo Jason had sent to the group chat (as per the rules) came out quite well, with zero weird poses or motion blur. Just the blue light from the movie hitting Leo’s face in a way that should be illegal.

They managed to watch three whole movies before anything bad happened. Frank should’ve known that the peace wouldn’t last forever, not with Percy and Leo involved. Really, it was amazing they made it that far in the first place. Halfway through The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey all went to shit.

“Gods, Leo you’re practically burning up.” Percy had said.

Frank didn’t see completely what happened. Percy and Leo were sitting right in front of him so most of his view was just Percy’s back and Leo’s shaggy hair. He did see the way Leo’s entire body convulsed, slipping out of Percy’s arms in a matter of seconds. Frank’s eyes snapped from the movie down to the floor at the sound.

“Leo?” Percy asked, hands moving to reach for Leo who was sitting about as far as he possibly could, a nervous smile on his face. Leo’s eyes were glued to the screen, but Frank could tell he wasn’t taking in anything of what Gandalf was telling the dwarves on the screen.

“Leo? Did I do something?”

Leo glanced at him for a second, shooting him a stilted smile, “Nah, it’s all fine. Don’t worry. I was just getting warm.”

Percy narrowed his eyes, “You don’t get warm. You're immune to heat. I’m the one that gets warm.”

“Sometimes I get warm too, Perce. It just doesn't hurt me.”

“You could’ve just told me to put the blankets away, Leo.”

Leo shrugged and went back to practically glaring at the screen with the way he was looking at it.

Frank shifted a bit pulling his legs closer to himself and patting the spot next to him, “Do you wanna sit up here? You said you don’t like the floor.”

“No, it’s fine.”

The silence was awkward. All three of them knew full well Leo didn’t leave because he was warm. He’d looked like a cat earlier, comfortable and at peace, leaning into Percy completely. This was the opposite. Frank thought if he reached out and touched Leo, he’d fall apart and break into a billion tiny pieces, he was that strung up. Like a bow wound too tight, ready to break when fired.

Percy looked at Jason and Frank helplessly, the movie long forgotten. Jason shrugged and looked at Leo, watching him in case the latter did something. Frank didn’t know what to do. Sure, he and Leo got along, and they didn’t hate each other anymore but they were far from best friends or even good friends. If they didn’t have mutual friends and lived basically in the same place, Frank knew they probably wouldn’t even talk at all. Still, Frank was worried. How could he not be? In the middle of the movie, Leo had picked he’d clammed up completely and turned into the boy Frank had met six years ago. Gone was the comfortable and relaxed Leo that’d been present throughout their vacation, replaced by an insecure and boarded up boy, afraid of everything around him. Frank wanted to hold him, protect him, and promise that it’d all be okay. Somehow though, he knew that wouldn’t be the right thing to do right now.

“Leo,” Percy tried again. He swallowed and looked at the floor before forcing himself to look straight at Leo, “Is it because I touched you? Because my hand accidentally went under your shit?”

Jason froze in his seat and Frank whipped his head around at Percy. They all knew that it really wasn’t a big deal. Hands on skin weren’t inherently sexual, hell Leo regularly slept in the same bed as Piper and Jason there was some level of skinship bound to happen, but Frank still hadn’t expected it. He knew it could happen accidentally, especially with the way Percy’s arms had been wound around Leo’s waist. Given the amount of hand-holding Leo initiates with Piper and Jason though, Frank couldn’t think of a reason why Percy’s hand accidentally brushing against Leo’s stomach could make Leo react like that.

“It’s fine,” Leo answered. His voice was uncomfortably cheery.

“No, it’s not fine,” Percy insisted, “If I made you uncomfortable or hurt you in any way you need to tell me. I don’t want you to feel like you need to put up with that just so you can pick two movies or not make it awkward.”

“It’s fine.”

Jason leaned down from his seat a bit to be closer to him. He mumbled to him quietly, but still loudly enough for Leo to understand it clearly, “We won’t be mad at you. Percy’s not mad at you. It’s okay if you’re not comfortable or if you changed your mind about how you felt after a while. And it’s okay if you feel uncomfortable with us touching you. You just need to tell us, so we won’t do it again and so we won’t get worried, okay?” Jason coerced, “I know it’s hard, but we promise that no matter what happened, we won’t be mad and Percy won’t be offended that you left him.”

“Jason’s right,” Percy agreed, “I’m really not angry that you left.”

“I don’t mind you touching me,” Leo said instead of addressing anything else Jason had said. Frank had a hard time following anything that was going on at the moment. He was no stranger to panic attacks and the likes, but this was different. This was Leo having a reaction to a specific situation that probably made him afraid. But Frank didn’t know what. He didn’t know what in Leo’s life could’ve made him react like this.

“Then what did I do that made you uncomfortable?”

“It’s nothing, guys. Let’s just watch the movie and forget about it. I’m fine, really.”

Jason scrunched up his eyebrows, visibly frustrated, but he didn’t let it slip into his voice, keeping it gentle and levelheaded, “Leo, remember we talked about this. You don’t have to tell us why it made you feel wrong if you don’t want to or if you don’t feel comfortable doing that just yet, or ever, but it’d really help us not make that mistake again if you’d tell us what it was. That way we won’t do it again.”

The gentle talking to didn’t seem to be working this time. Frank could tell Jason had repeated the same words in the past, probably gotten it from a therapist somewhere. But right now, they didn’t seem to be what Leo needed to hear. In a way it felt like Leo desperately wanted to tell, wanted them to know what happened and seek comfort but that he wasn’t allowing himself to.

“You’re not weak or soft for sharing, you know,” Frank said, heart hammering in his chest. This was the first time he’d ever seen Leo be even a bit vulnerable and _fuck_ he didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know what to say, how to soothe him, how to make him understand that it’s okay. “I know you don’t like looking weak but none of us will think of you as weak for stating that something made you uncomfortable.”

Somehow though, those words seemed to hit it on the head, “It’s fine. I can just go and sit with Percy again, really, it’s not bad. I was just feeling a little warm.”

“You’re not the only one here who has things like that, you know that right?” Percy asked. Frank didn’t know what he meant, “Do you know why I don’t do high-fives? Why I call my mom every other day?”

Leo didn’t answer, just continued staring at the screen like he wasn’t hearing anything anyone was telling him.

“My step-dad used to tell me that if I let him hit me, he wouldn’t do anything to my mom,” Percy began, “He used to say that I was stupid and annoying and that if he could he’d get rid of me forever. I flinch every time someone goes in for a high-five because it’s been years, but the fear never goes away. The urge to duck doesn’t go away either. I call my mom because, even though I know that Paul is good to her, I can’t help but distrust him. I can’t help but worry that he’ll do something to Estelle and my mom.”

Frank felt like his lungs got sucked out of him. Nothing could have prepared him. He wasn’t meant to be there. This wasn’t for him to hear. Still, he couldn’t get himself to move. All he could do was sit and watch as it unfolded.  
Leo didn’t say anything, but he blinked, and his jaw tightened. His eyes stayed on the screen. Percy swallowed and continued.

“I was terrified to tell anyone that I don’t like high-fives and I hated when people told me I’m too close to my mom. Because It’s stupid and it makes sense to me to do those things. Gabe, my stepdad, he hurt me. A lot. And I learned how to do makeup. You found a bottle of concealer in my bag once, remember?” Leo nodded just barely, “I don’t use it anymore. I don’t have to. There’s nothing to cover anymore. But I used to. And I held on to that habit because it was comfortable.”

Leo didn’t speak when Percy finished. No one did. The only sound left coming from the TV and the occasional wind whipping outside. Frank could faintly hear the girls laughing in Piper’s room. Frank didn’t like the silence. He didn’t mind the quiet usually. But this wasn’t the one he was comfortable with.  
When it didn’t seem like Leo would be speaking at all, Frank took a steadying breath before speaking,

“You know why I read those tourist brochures?” he asked. He could feel Jason’s and Percy’s eyes on him but he willed himself to continue, “I don’t have my piece of wood anymore, it’s not tied to me anymore, but sometimes I still feel like it is. Like I could die any moment because it burned down. I read those boring brochures so that if I do go to bed one day without waking up the next, I’ll at least have seen the world in pictures. I want to live as much as I can, but I’m scared to because that piece of wood still feels like it’s here. I keep my hands in my pocket because I’m scared it will fall out, even though it’s not there anymore. I’m terrified of fire because it could have ended me in seconds,” Frank smiled a little bit, just in case Leo was looking, “It sounds silly when I say it, but it’s a habit. We all have our habits and ways of feeling. I can’t control how I feel around fire, and I’m sure you can’t control how you react when something that makes you uncomfortable happens.”

“Frank’s right,” Jason said, “It wasn’t my fault that my mom left me, but she did and that changes the way I behave. That’s not bad. Leo, you reacting to things that hurt you aren’t bad. I promise you, none of us will judge you or make you feel bad for speaking your mind. I swear on the river Styx.”

“Don’t swear on Styx,” Leo whispered. His voice sounded far away.

“I will. I have. No take-backs.”

It was silent again and for a bit, Frank thought that was the end of it. That Leo would stay quiet for the rest of the evening and they’d go to their rooms later, pretending like nothing happened only to cry to one another in the group chat without Leo.

“I was just a little warm,” Leo mumbled.

Frank and Percy looked at Jason to figure out where this was going. If anyone knew, Jason would be the one. He was staring at Leo, though his eyes widened in realization after a few seconds. Frank wasn’t sure he wanted to know what this was about, not with the way Jason was looking borderline panicked.

“I was just a little warm,” Leo repeated, “My foster mom, she said she’d help me cool down. She said that it’d be fast and that it’d be no big deal. That if I let her help me cool down, she’d give me an ice pop. I thought she’d give me an ice pop.”

“Leo,” Jason started but nothing followed.

“Percy’s hands don’t feel like hers. Yours are calloused, they don’t feel soft or warm. They’re cold. Hers were soft. They were really soft. I didn’t like it.” He mumbled, “She always promised it wouldn’t hurt. She’d say that if I behaved, she’d be nice, and it wouldn’t be bad. I slept in her bed. The house was big. Too many rooms for a little kid she said, that I’d get lost. She said she didn’t want me to be alone at night. She said she wanted to make sure I was safe. That she could hold me tight. Her hands were warm.” Leo tilted his head to the side a bit, gummy smile plastered on his face like he was talking about ice cream and not his guardian taking advantage of him, “She’d pick me up from school sometimes and we’d go see a movie. After the movie, if I was good, she’d always smile and tell me how much she loved me, that she never wanted me to grow up. That she liked me best the way I was. That she wouldn’t let anyone else touch me, that she wanted to protect me. She always said I was her favorite little good boy. I wanted to be good for her. Sometimes I was just a little cold and she made it better.”

Frank wanted to wretch. To find this woman and throw her into Tartarus, let her live through the things she did to Leo. Make her pay for the way she ruined Leo.  
the worst part of listening to Leo was, that it made sense. Frank could practically watch it all fall into place in Percy’s head. Leo’s misplaced childishness, desperate need to rebel and yet still preening whenever he was praised, breaking the rules, to exist without anyone telling him who to be and yet always seeking approval and validation from everyone around him. Frank had always thought that Leo acted like a child; like he’d never fully grown up, even now at 22, he didn’t seem grown up the same way the others did. And fuck, it made sense. It made sense to Frank that Leo was trying to live a childhood he never had. A childhood that wasn’t just ruined by the Godly world and its monsters, out to get Leo at every street corner, but by very real monsters sleeping in the same bed as Leo.

None of them had gotten to have proper childhoods, being a demigod did that to you. But Leo’s had not just been denied a childhood like every other kid, it’d been brutally ripped from him one touch at a time and Frank couldn’t imagine anything worse than that. A scared little boy in a house he didn’t know, being forced into things he didn’t understand by a woman who was meant to protect him.

“How—” Percy’s voice cracked mid-sentence, “How old were you when you came to her?”

Leo smiled a little, as though the memory amused him, “She promised that if I behaved, we’d go laser tagging for my 13th birthday. She said I was good. Her hands were on me for weeks. Sometimes I think she’s still there, promising to protect me if I’m good for her.”

“When did you run away?” Frank asked, just above a whisper.

“I didn’t want to go laser tagging again. I didn’t want to sleep in her bed again.”

“You were fourteen?”

“One day before. Her cake was always bad. She didn’t know how to bake.”

“Was it me touching you that made you feel like you were with her again?” Percy asked slowly, careful not to move any closer.

Leo shook his head and turned to give Percy a smile. It made Frank’s stomach drop, the way he kept smiling like it was nothing, “No. It’s fine. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

Percy thought for a moment, “Was it that you were feeling warm and I was holding you and you’re not used to me being the one doing that?”

Leo stayed quiet at that. Smile slowly falling from his face, like he was realizing the situation.

“Was it that because you and I don’t touch much, me suddenly holding you close when you were feeling warm made you react as though you were back in her house? Would it have been okay if Jason was holding you?”

“I’m used to Jason. He feels different.” Leo said, “It’s not your fault. I was reacting badly. I shouldn’t have reacted that way. I made you feel bad.”

“No, no, you didn’t make me feel bad at all. I just want to understand so we can avoid this in the future.” Percy clarified. He genuinely didn’t sound hurt, “So Jason would be alright?”

“I—” Leo hesitated, looking to Jason, almost like waiting for his approval. Jason nodded encouragingly, “Yeah. Jason is okay. Piper too.”

“What about Hazel?”

“She’s okay. She feels too cold to be Teresa.”

Frank filed the name away for later googling purposes, set to at least find out who she was so he could put a face to his anger, bubbling in his chest

“Is Annabeth okay?” Leo hesitated and Percy nodded, “That’s okay. Remember, we’re not mad.”

“I know.”

Jason sighed quietly, “We mean it, Leo. We’re not mad at you if you say you’re not yet comfortable with someone touching you.”

“I know.”

Percy regarded him for a bit before asking again, “What about Frank?”

Leo’s eyes flicked to Frank before they moved back to Percy, “I don’t know.”

“We’ll take that as a no for now,” Jason said, “What about Percy? Is he completely off-limits touching wise, or just at that moment?”

“I—I don’t—I,” Leo stuttered. He frowned, angry at the words that wouldn’t come before resolutely looking at the ground, “Frank and Percy scare me.”

Jason nodded and Frank tried to ignore the sting in his chest at Leo’s words. It was one thing to be off-limits for touching by your crush but your crush being scared of you was a whole other story. Frank understood though. He didn’t fault Leo for feeling that way. Not only were both Frank and Percy a lot taller than him, with Frank towering an entire foot above him, but they were also bigger too and unfortunately for all of them, Frank and Percy didn’t really get off on the best foot with Leo. Frank understood. That didn’t make it hurt any less though.

“We’ll make sure to remember that for the future, okay?” Percy asked.

Leo whined, “Don’t treat me like glass. I’m not. I’m not soft or weak or a kid. Don’t treat me differently just because of that.”

Percy shook his head, “That’s not what we’re doing. Making sure you’re comfortable is not treating you like glass, it’s treating you well.” He told Leo, “I get that you feel like everyone will be tiptoeing around you now, but I swear we won’t. I’ll still mess around with you and we can still wrestle on the couch for the remote and I know Frank won’t stop training with you just because we know you’re not entirely comfortable with us touching you. The only thing that will change is that we’ll make sure you consent beforehand and during whatever we’re doing.”

Leo scoffed, “You’re making it sound like we’re gonna fuck or something.”

Frank damn near choked on his spit at that. Percy didn’t look any better, a spooked look on his face.

Jason jumped in before it could get awkward, “Leo, you know full well what we mean.”

“Are you saying you wouldn’t fuck me, Jace?” Leo challenged stilted jokiness to his voice, “I’m hurt. Don’t you think I’m hot?”

“You and I both know the answer to that question so stop being dense,” Jason said.

Frank didn’t like this conversation at all. It was making him queasy in a way he hadn’t felt since Hazel told him about her death.

“Tell me, do you think Percy is hotter than me?”

Jason sighed and they knew there was no way around Leo now. Leo was done talking. The jokes were back and there was no way to get him to start opening up again. At least not during this conversation. Maybe in a couple of days but until then, it’d be shitty jokes and deflections. Once Leo started joking, it always meant he was done sharing. Done being vulnerable.

“You’re the only one for me,” Jason answered sarcastically. Frank envied his ease in speaking to Leo that way. Both Percy and Frank knew that what Jason said wasn’t technically wrong. He was just coating it in enough humor that Leo wouldn’t understand. Frank wished he could do the same.

“Don’t let Piper hear, she’ll get jealous.”

Rolling his eyes Jason leaned back in his seat on the couch and focused back on the screen where the movie was still running. Frank had completely forgotten about it. He had no idea what was happening anymore. Not that he’d known before either, but now even less. Not to mention that anytime he tried to focus on the movie his thoughts wandered back to Leo and his birthday. To a little boy sleeping in a bed, terrified of the monster sleeping next to him.

Frank couldn’t focus.

Leo got up off the ground and got another can of Red Bull from the mini-fridge. Jason, Percy, and Frank watched him move. The four of them continued watching the movie, all pretending to pay attention. Frank knew Jason and Percy were thinking the same thing he was. Even if Jason had already known about it before, hearing it again must have done something to him because his eyes never left Leo for longer than a few minutes at a time. Frank wished he knew what Leo was thinking. Whether he was thinking about ice pops and his 13th birthday too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Take a shot every time I write uncomfortable  
> \-- -- --  
> Hello  
> I am back after more than a month  
> So yeah sorry for the hiatus I was busy with other stuff and all that so uh yeah sorry dudes
> 
> Anyway, was anyone gonna tell me that Frank is literally 2m (approx 6"6) tall or was I meant to find that out by myself???  
> I hope the characters aren't too ooc it's kinda hard to write them discussing past trauma and all that when they never do it in the books properly (duh bc they're books for young teens lmao) so it's hard for me to know how they'd behave, especially now that tehy're between 20 and 23 years old you know  
> So yeah let me know how you liked it please, I'm never sure how much angst I can put in this before it's too much or before people get uncomfortable so please tell me :))
> 
> Now, I want you all to understand how I wrote this because it explains why the story is all over the place okay:  
> -Write the first part before it gets sad, start browsing the internet and looking at memes and crack vids, write one paragraph, watch NCT videos on YT, go back to writing, get up and teach yourself the Lucifer choreography (yes the SHINee one don't judge me okay), put on the most upbeat music you can find, finish writing this hell piece of a chapter  
> you're welcome  
> I write things and make them other people's problems so here you go
> 
> Thanks to everyone who's still reading this and hasn't abandoned it, you're the real MVP
> 
> also don't expect consistent updates on this, school is starting next week so like who knows what happens
> 
> Love y'all, stay safe and hydrate and wash your hands & ily
> 
> Edit: I finally made a tumble again so here you go: https://oh-reolli.tumblr.com/ or @oh-reolli


	5. Falling for the ecstasy of your mercy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: implied sexual content (it's very consensual dw)
> 
> title for the chapter from "Gimme Gimme" by NCT 127

Leo slipped through the door and out onto the deck. He felt the wind pull him from left to right, nearly knocking him off his feet. It was cold. So, so cold. It felt good. Leo couldn’t stand the heat anymore. The incessant pressure on his chest as he sat in the stuffy ship. He was running hot, his hands close to going up in flames. He needed something to cool him down. There was only one thing he could think of right now. One thing he knew would cool him down, make him forget all about everything that happened at the sleepover. Just a while ago he’d been sitting in Percy’s room spilling his guts to three of his crushes. He felt sick to his stomach the thought. Uncomfortably vulnerable even. Something in his chest tugged at the feeling of having shared too much, having shown too much of himself. He didn’t like it. He hated it. Hated the heavy weight he felt on his legs with every step he took, knowing that he gave a piece of himself to someone who didn’t care. Someone who would never care the same way he did. He needed a distraction. He needed out. Out of his head, out of this ship, out of this place.

**You** :

Come get me

He sent the message before he could think much of it. Attached to it was a photo of his location. He knew it’d be enough. It was always enough. Knowing the other, Leo could have sent a single period and he’d be here in a second to pick him up and take him away. A single missed call would be enough. One word and the other would abandon everything. Leo loved the feeling it gave him. Having someone at his beck and call like that was foreign. It was pleasant.

**+xx-xxx-xxxxxxxx** :

On my way

Leo smiled at the message. He pulled his shirt closer to his chest and stared out at the sky. If one of the others came out now to see him, he’d be dead. All of them had agreed that it’d be best if they all stayed inside at night, especially when it got dark and windy, but Leo didn’t care, not right now. Right now, he needed out, cold be damned.   
Piper would kill him if she saw him outside wearing nothing but a rumpled T-Shirt, and sweatpants. Not even shoes. They would’ve been too loud. Technically he was still supposed to be at the sleepover. It hadn’t ended yet. Two-thirds through their fourth movie Percy and Frank had fallen asleep. Jason had been on the brink as well. Leo had told him he’d go take a shower and when Leo had come back to check ten minutes later Jason too had been fast asleep on the sofa, snuggling with Frank. Leo hadn’t been able to help the chuckle that left his lips. Seeing the other three sleep so peacefully together tugged at his heart in a far too familiar way. He’d forced himself to look away and go out on the deck instead. He wasn’t ready to think about his feelings more.   
The girls had still been loudly singing and messing around in Piper’s room. It made a good cover for any noise Leo made packing a quick overnight bag. Any other noise the doors might have made was muffled by the wind whipping outside. It was a perfect night to get lost.

The air grew colder around Leo and he reveled in the sting on his skin. It hurt in the best way possible. Around him, the dark shifted and when Leo blinked his eyes open through the wind he found the one person who knew how to make it all go away, standing right in front of him. Leo laughed. He wasn’t much better than Leo. He must have gotten dressed and ready as soon as he’d seen Leo’s text, forgetting that it was a lot colder up in the air somewhere in Czechia than it was in Camp-Half-Blood.

“Nico,” Leo greeted, “I missed you.”

Nico rolled his eyes, “No you didn’t. Where’s your jacket?”

“Didn’t bring one.”

“Piper and Jason will kill me.”

Leo shrugged and stepped closer, standing a hairs width away from him, “They won’t know,” He smiled and wrapped his hand around Nico’s wrist, “Take me away?”

“Hold on tight.”

Leo snorted. Nico always acted like it was the first time they did this. Like it was the first time Leo called him late at night, begging Nico to make it all okay.  
He felt the air around them contract and the next thing he knew was a familiar darkness enveloping him, the only feeling around him, that of Nico’s cold skin beneath his.  
The first time they’d done this, Leo had been newly resurrected. He’d been unable to sleep, tossing and turning in his bed, staring at the ceiling too afraid to go to sleep in case the nightmares returned. It had all been too much. The screaming, the heat from the explosion burning into his skin, the sudden cold that had followed after and then the never-ending silence.   
After his third fruitless attempt at falling asleep Leo had given up and made his way to the only person, he could think of who might understand. Nico. He knocked on Nico’s door and the other had let him in without question. The look on Leo’s face must have told him everything he needed to know because an hour and a long conversation later, the two had fallen into bed together the first time. Nico had been cold to the touch, finally stifling the burning deep inside Leo, and for the first time Nico hadn’t felt frozen. They’d cancelled each other out. It had worked perfectly. So, they’d continued. Slowly it’d even become somewhat of a routine. Whenever Leo felt himself drowning in the heat he’d go to Nico or send him his location and not even five minutes later Nico would be there to make it better. Leo didn’t know how to thank him. He didn’t think there was any way to thank him.

“Go take a shower. You look like crap.” Nico told him when the dark went away, making way for the soft light coming from a small desk lamp.   
Leo had always liked Nico’s small house. It was still in New York, but it wasn’t camp. Originally, the house had been meant for Nico and Hazel to stay at should they need a place away from either Camp Jupiter or Camp-Half-Blood. Nowadays, Nico was the only one who used it. Leo knew because Hazel hadn’t been there in more than two years and the only other person who went there regularly was Leo. But nobody needed to know that. Right now, it was their little secret.   
The house was in the suburbs, surrounded by identical, small houses with identical people living in them. It was the perfect place to hide. Whether it was Monsters or people, Leo wasn’t sure. He supposed both.  
Nodding, he shuffled to the stairs and down the hall to the dingy bathroom. One look in the mirror told him that Nico hadn’t been wrong. He really did look like shit. He hadn’t even realized he still had that far away look on his face, eyes focused on everything and nothing at the same time. Somewhere deep in them, Leo found a tiny bit of warmth. He wanted to squash it. Get rid of it before it could grow any more than it was already had. Tonight, was not the time for warmth. Tomorrow afternoon they’d be arriving a little way off from Prague, but until then Leo had one last night of freedom before he’d have to face everything he didn’t want to think about. One last night away from the wretched heat.  
The spray of the water was the last push to wake him up fully. It didn’t take long. A couple of minutes after arriving, Leo stepped out of the bathroom and onto the carpet of Nico’s bedroom.  
Nico was already there closing the curtains and turning on a small light on the nightstand. It was always the same. Leo went to take a shower while Nico prepared. Over time it had become a habit.

“Leo?” Nico asked when he heard him close the bathroom door behind him, “Do the others know you’re gone?”

Leo hated that question. He knew Nico had a right to ask. This was different. Usually, when they hooked up, they were both at camp or at least in New York, or on rare occurrences, Leo was alone somewhere, and Nico would come to get him. There was never the worry of someone waking up to find Leo gone, of thinking Leo had run away again. Still, Leo didn’t want to think about the others right now. He wanted to forget all about them.

“They’re sleeping.” He told him, “Who cares anyway?”

“What if they wake up?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Leo shuffled closer to Nico, pushing him until his legs hit the bed, “I don’t want to think about them right now.”

Nico chuckled, “They’ve been stressful?”

“They’re the same as always. Just more I guess.”

“How can they be the same and more at the same time?” Nico asked. He wrapped his arms tightly around Leo and pulled him on the bed with him, lying on their sides, facing each other. Nico’s arms were pleasantly cold around him. They grounded him in reality, away from the burning of the explosion or Percy’s hands or Teresa’s traces.

Leo shook his head, “It’s dumb. Let’s just forget it.”

“It’s not stupid. What is it?” Nico’s voice had a dangerous tone to it. Leo didn’t know what it meant.

“It’s nothing really. No big deal.”

“Did Frank lecture you about table manners again?”

Leo chuckled and shook his head.

“Then did Percy and Jason steal the last of your snacks?”

He shook his head again.

Nico smiled at him gently, “Is Piper trying to get you to watch a show with her?”

“No, nothing like that,” Leo said, “It’s different. But it doesn’t matter, it’s dumb.”

“Clearly, it’s bothering you, so it can’t be stupid.”

Leo sighed and glanced at Nico’s eyes for a moment, finding nothing but comfort and understanding in those tired empty eyes.

“They were saying today at dinner, Piper and Jason, that they love me.” He began, “It’s not weird if they do it, they always say they love me. But then Hazel laughed and said that everyone loves me. And they all agreed and laughed.”

“That sounds awkward.”

“It was.” Leo frowned and moved closer to Nico, “It was all about how they all love me and how everyone has a crush on me at Camp.”

“And that’s bad because…?”

“Because loving someone shouldn’t be a _joke_.”

Nico tilted his head and tightened his grip, “A joke?”

“It feels like they’re laughing about a joke I’m not in on. Like I’m missing the punch line. Like I’m the only one not in on the gag or something.”

“They do love you though,” Nico said. Leo wanted to laugh. _Yeah, but not the way I want them to_. He couldn’t bring himself to actually laugh.

“It doesn’t feel like it.” He sighed, “It feels like they’re making fun of me.”

“Love can feel different ways sometimes. Like I love Will even though I make fun of him and his doctoring all the time. Sometimes it’s just a little different.”

“I don’t want it like that. I don’t want them to love me in a way that’s laughable. I don’t want to be a joke to them.” Leo said, “Percy said I’m warm, easy to love. Then at— later at night, he and Jason and Frank said a bunch of stuff about wanting me to be comfortable, about wanting to be close to me but not hurting me.”

His mouth went dry at the memory and he forced himself to push further. Nico’s hands drew comforting circles into Leo’s hips. It made it a bit easier. Just a bit.

“I don’t want to be easy to love. I want it to be real. Not a joke.” He swallowed and looked at Nico, eyes far away, “I want to forget about it. I don’t want to comfortable or warm or soft or whatever else they said. Will you make it go away? Make me cold and tired and make me forget all about tonight.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.” Leo confirmed, “I want it. I want out. Make me okay again.”

Nico nodded and pushed up and on top of Leo, bringing his mouth down next to Leo’s ear to whisper, “You won’t even remember their names when we’re done.”

The grip on Leo’s hips tightened and Leo felt himself forget and fall out of all his worries, the only feeling on him Nico’s breath and mumbled words. Leo let out a deep breath and moved his hands to Nico’s neck,

“Make me whole again, Nico.”

* * *

Growing up he’d thought he’d be terrified of sex. And he hadn’t been entirely wrong. For a while, he’d hated the idea, had been disgusted by it. But as he grew older, started hanging around people he probably shouldn’t have hung around it changed. He’d found quickly that it felt liberating. Like he was taking back his agency. For once, when he slept with someone, it was his decision and he’d capitalized on that. Every hook up he could get, every person he could get to fall in love with him, it had felt like he was taking back the control that Teresa had tried too hard to take away from him.   
She’d insisted that he was hers, that only she could see him like that, that he was only her good little boy. She’d told him that everyone else was dangerous and that they’d want to hurt him. Sleeping around with people had and still does feel like a quiet fuck you to her and her stupid rules. Having people hold him, tell him how good he’s being, it made him feel like it was his choice like Teresa wasn’t in control of him anymore.   
He’d properly lost his virginity in his first year at Wilderness School. He didn’t count the things Teresa did as losing his virginity, it was too disgusting, and he hadn’t agreed to it. He didn’t want to think of that as his first time.   
The girl had been sweet, and she’d been nice about it when Leo had told her he only wanted to mess around with no strings attached. They hadn’t been awkward. That had been the first time Leo had realized that messing around with strangers, people Teresa wouldn’t approve of, made him feel powerful. Like if he just did it enough, she’d know and be mad, but she wouldn’t be able to do anything about it. Realistically he knew that she wouldn’t know. She probably didn’t even care. If Leo was honest with himself, she probably hadn’t ever cared. Teresa had gotten a kid from foster care, broken him and after Leo, she probably just got another one. Forster kids running away wasn’t a big deal. Besides, Leo knew that had he told anyone; nobody would’ve believed him. A kid who’d run away as many times as he had, nobody would believe him over a trustworthy suburban lady.

Nico had been far too gentle with him at first. Leo didn’t want gentle. He didn’t want soft touches and gentle words, he wanted messy and loud and angry. He wanted to forget and to let everything he was feeling at that moment. Slowly but surely, Leo had taught him, and Nico hard learned. He’d learned that Leo didn’t like it when he took his time and held him close. He’d learned to keep the soft touches to a minimum.   
Now, Nico knew what to do to make Leo feel right and Leo knew what to do for Nico in turn. It was mutual. It was familiar. It was good. Leo felt free in those moments. The rare moments where it was only Leo and Nico, messing around in bed, away from people telling him what to do, who to talk to, how to be, and how to behave. This was comfortable. Leo knew it was dangerous; putting this much trust and dependence on someone, but he couldn’t help himself.   
Eventually, Nico would find someone to date, someone to properly care for and take out on dates. He’d grow tired of being rough and letting Leo tell him how to fuck him. He’d grow tired of Leo’s constant issues and need for validation and attention. And when that happened, Leo would be tossed aside. Leo was nothing but a semi-regular hookup. He wouldn’t fit into any relationship Nico might possibly have. Still, Leo couldn’t help himself whenever Nico looked at him like that and held him close, coaxing him into talking about whatever was bothering him, before fucking him into next week until Leo couldn’t even remember his own name.   
Being with Nico this way was dangerous. Dangerous because Leo was becoming too dependent and dangerous because Leo was already half in love with six other people, he could not afford to catch feelings for another person. Part of the reason he’d even let the hookups with Nico keep happening had been a futile attempt at getting over the increasing crushes on his friends. Nico knew that. Nico was the only person Leo had told about the fact that he was halfway in love with the people closest to him. Of everyone, Nico knew the most. Which was just another reason doing this was dangerous. Every new bit of himself that Leo revealed to Nico, was another step toward letting himself fall into Nico and that couldn’t happen.

“You’re thinking too loudly, I can hear you in my sleep,” Nico mumbled. His voice was deep and rough from lack of use (and possibly from last night’s activities but Leo wasn’t too sure; he couldn’t remember all that much). 

Leo opened his eyes only to close them again. The sun was shining too brightly for his liking. Someone should really invent an off switch that wouldn’t cause the world to end. For now, though, simply closing his eyes would have to be enough.   
He felt Nico’s arm heavy on his waist, caging him in. It didn’t feel restricting. Leo knew he could leave anytime. It felt comforting and safe. Dangerous.

“You have to take me back soon,” Leo told him. “I need to be back before everyone wakes up.”

Nico hummed and moved a little, his grip on Leo tightening, “Just a few more minutes.”

“No, now. I can’t have them finding out.”

“They won’t. I’ll shadow travel us to your room. You’ll just tell them that you were sleeping.”

“I don’t sleep in late.”

Nico hummed but didn’t seem interested in answering. Leo rolled his eyes fondly.

“They can’t find out. You need to take me back.”

“Why can’t they know?” Nico asked. It was almost so quiet that Leo didn’t hear but the words were crystal clear. Still Leo couldn’t get himself to understand.

“What?”

“Why do I have to be a secret?”

“You’re not a secret,” Leo assured.

Finally, Nico opened his eyes just enough to look at Leo. Leo didn’t like what he found, but he couldn’t look away.

“Then what am I? Because it seems like you’re ashamed of me. Of this, whatever it is.”

“I’m not. I just—” Leo tried to find the right words to express why the others couldn’t find out. The thing was, there were no right words. There was no actual reason as to why the hook ups with Nico had to be a secret. It wasn’t like Nico was a stranger, everyone knew him. He was trustworthy and friends with Percy. Nobody would be mad at Leo for occasionally (regularly) sleeping with Nico. It wouldn’t be a big deal. At least Leo hoped. In reality, he knew they’d manage to turn it into a big deal. Something about making sure Leo was safe. Leo didn’t get it. It was stupid. Still, it didn’t help him at all in reasoning why Nico should continue to be a dirty secret.

“Why can’t they know?” Nico insisted, “Why can’t we stay in bed and sleep? Why do I have to pick you up in secret and bring you back before the others wake up? Why do you have to sneak into my cabin after midnight to make sure no one sees? Why does this have to be a secret?”

“This isn’t anything. This is nothing.”

Leo frowned. His eyes flicked across Nico’s face, but it felt too intimate. Too close to what Leo wanted. He wanted to sleep in with Nico and to kiss in public, not just in bed when Leo was trying to forget himself. But he knew the others wouldn’t take kindly to that and he also knew that it would completely ruin his chances with any of them. Not that there was any chance in the first place, but a boy could dream. Leo hated that Nico was right. Leo hated being wrong.

“I need to get back to them.”

“Leo—”

“They don’t wake up before 9 am.” Leo said, completely ignoring Nico, “If we hurry, we’ll be just in time.”

Nico breathed out and shook his head in defeat, “I’ll get dressed.”

Leo nodded and disentangled himself from Nico’s arms. He didn’t like the empty feeling it left in his chest. He wanted to take it all back and lie back down in Nico’s embrace, held tight when the world was going down around them. He wanted the love Nico was giving him so freely, but Leo didn’t know what the price was, so he didn’t let himself take it. Not until he knew what Nico was playing at. Until then, he’d have to push down the empty feeling in his chest. He’d been doing it since he was 16, what was a couple more weeks in comparison to that? A couple more weeks, until Leo could get over his pathetic crushes on Nico and the rest of the Seven. A couple more weeks and it’d be fine. Leo could go out again and he’d find someone to fall in love with. Maybe not even love, just to fall into and drown in. He wanted someone to hold him close and let him drown. Nico was doing that. Percy, Annabeth, Hazel, Piper, Jason, and Frank were doing that. They’d open their arms wide and hold Leo as he fell. But not in the way Leo wanted them to. They’d hold him close in a way friends do. He’d never get a goodnight kiss or a hickey and much less hands running up his body where he wanted them so badly. It’d always just be ‘share a kiss with your homie’ like Percy and Jason had put it once. Gods, how much Leo had hated that. He knew that Percy and Jason, and probably Frank too knowing him, were as straight as can be. The three of them may as well have been frat boys with how straight they were, Leo didn’t need them to rub it in. Not to mention that even if they weren’t, they were dating Piper, Hazel, and Annabeth, all of whom also happened to be way out of Leo’s league and tragically uninterested in him.  
The only one who seemed remotely interested in fucking and holding Leo the way he wanted was Nico, but it couldn’t be love. Leo knew it wasn’t love. People didn’t love him. They used him, played with him, had their fun with him, and then left. Nico just hadn’t revealed his cards yet. Soon enough, he too would toss Leo away. No matter how much Leo wanted him to stay.  
Soon enough Nico will realize how weird Leo’s crushes are and he’ll tell Leo to fuck off. He’ll realize how messed up Leo is. Leo knows it. He’s as sure of it as he’s sure he died that day.

“Do you have all your stuff?” Nico asked. He stepped into the foyer, the same bomber jacket hanging from his shoulders. Except now it fit him. He’d grown into it. Recently, Nico hadn’t just grown into his clothes, he’d also grown into himself. Leo couldn’t look away.

“Yeah,” Leo whispered.

Nico nodded and stepped closer, gripping Leo tightly around his waist. There was no reason to. Leo knew full well that Nico could just hold his wrist, but it didn’t matter. Leo let him hold him tight one last time. Leo wanted him to hold him. Just once, Leo let himself indulge.

“Take me home, Nico,” Leo told him when Nico wasn’t moving.

Nico nodded, something in his eyes that Leo didn’t understand. He didn’t have enough courage to examine that look. It’d only lead to wrong assumptions and a ruined friendship, or whatever it was they had. Leo wasn’t sure anymore.

The floor under him gave out and Leo felt the familiar cold envelop him before the world went black and the only thing left, were Nico’s hands on Leo’s back. He loved it. He wished he could stay like this forever. It didn’t last. As fast as the floor had disappeared, it’d returned, this time in from of the Argo II parquet he’d made himself. His room was warmer than Nico’s house was. Leo didn’t like it. Not anymore. When he’d built the Argo II almost six years ago, he’d longed for the warmth, like a substitute for someone who’d never be there. Nowadays he wished he’d slacked on the insulation and installed a proper AC that could run all year 24/7. The warmth was too overwhelming, too much, too comfortable. It was too much like something Leo knew he’d never get. Some nights Leo was suffocating in it. Those nights he called Nico.

“Get some actual rest. I know you’ll just spend the day running around and then you’ll be exhausted.” Nico told him when he finally lets go, stepping back a bit.

“You say that like you’re any better.”

“Just take care of yourself, yeah?”

Leo rolled his eyes but couldn’t help the fond smile on his face, “Whatever, Death Breath. Just get out before someone sees.”

Clearly, that was the wrong thing to say, because the soft smile on Nico’s face vanished in an instant, replaced with that look he’d had at the house. It looked almost empty. It made Leo’s stomach twist and turn uncomfortably. Still, Nico nodded and shook his head turning away from Leo to stand in the shadow in the corner of the room.

“I wish this didn’t have to be a secret,” Nico told him before disappearing into the shadows, leaving only the faint smell of death behind. Leo’s chest tightened and his hands ran cold.

“This is nothing.” He whispered more to himself than anyone else, almost as though he was trying to convince himself.

He made a beeline out of his room and to the shared bathroom, not caring what he looked like or that someone might notice the distinct smell of death on him. He needed to throw up and he needed to do it now, lest he'd choke on it and die. Wouldn’t that be a way to go? Death by repressed feelings and denial. It seemed fitting, somehow.  
Leo hung his head over the toilet seat and wretched, almost choking between the tears running down his face and his stomach emptying itself of all its (limited) contents. Somewhere deep in his mind, Leo wondered whether he could throw up his heart. He’d like that, he thought. Maybe then all his pathetic feelings would go away. Or he’d just go into cardiac arrest. Either seemed like a good solution.

Someone knocked on the door and Leo thought his heart might actually jump out of his throat and into the toilet. He coughed and swallowed, ignoring the acidic taste and burn in his throat, before answering.

“What?” He called out.

“Leo? I need to brush my teeth,” Hazel called.

He swallowed again and shook his head, a weak attempt to clear his head, “Uh, yeah, just give me a second. I’ll be right out.”

“Leo?” Hazel called again, “Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, just give me a second.”

He got off the floor flushed the toilet and stumbled his way to the sink, quickly washing out his mouth as best as he could. He didn’t dare look in the mirror. He didn’t want to know what he looked like. He always looked thoroughly fucked after a night with Nico and usually he had enough time to get fixed up. Not this morning apparently. He’d rather not know what he looked like the morning after Nico had his way with him. It’d only make it more real. 

He wiped his mouth and went to pull open the door, giving Hazel a wide smile. He hoped that she couldn’t tell he’d just been purging his heart and soul out over the toilet.   
She eyes him suspiciously, but he didn’t stick around long enough for her to ask anything. Pushing past her, he disappeared down the hallway and into the kitchen. He needed coffee, fast. He wasn’t sure that he’d be able to stomach food right now, but he needed something in him. 

The kitchen and dining room were empty, save for the green-screen of Camp-Half-Blood. Leo grimaced at it and reached for the remote, turning it off. He didn’t want to see Camp right now. Every look at it only reminded him of Nico and the things he’d said. Leo still wasn’t sure what they meant. He didn’t know why it was so important to Nico that they weren’t a secret.   
Almost on autopilot, Leo shoved the coffee into the machine and pressed the button, waiting for it to run through so he could finally wake up properly. Nico never had any coffee at his house. Not that he had much of anything actually.

Just as the coffee machine stopped and he went to grab the cup, he felt a pair of hands snake around his middle and someone lean on his back, resting their on the back of his neck. His first instinct was to tell Nico to fuck off before someone saw, but then he remembered Nico had just dropped him off. This wasn’t Nico.

“Good Morning, Leo,” Piper mumbled into his shirt and Leo relaxed. It was just Piper. He knew Piper. Piper was okay. Piper was more than okay. If it were up to him, he’d stay in her arms forever with only small breaks to cuddle everyone else. But it wasn’t up to him.

“Morning, Pipes.” He told her, wincing at the way his voice sounded. He really shouldn’t have ruined his throat like that with Nico. It always came to bite him in the ass.

“You sound rough.”

“It’s nothing, don’t worry.” He told her.

She hummed, “tough night?”

“Yeah.”

“Nightmares?”

Leo wanted to laugh, “Something like that.”

She nodded and gripped him a little tighter. Leo couldn’t help the guilty feeling that settled in his stomach at lying to his best friend like this. Especially using something as serious as nightmares as a cover-up for fucking someone.

“Any plans for today?” She asked. Her head moved and she rested it on his shoulder, her nose moving along his neck. He really hoped her eyes were still closed, otherwise, she’d definitely notice the way his ears were turning red. No way she’d let him live that down, no way in hell.

“We’re arriving today, aren’t we?”

“Annabeth and I booked the hotel. I think you’ll like it.”

“It better not be a hostel.” He joked.

Piper snorted and moved a bit, dragging him with her as she waddled around the counter and into the dining room. Leo almost forgot the cup of coffee on the counter. She pulled him with her as she sat, placing him on her lap. He forgot sometimes how strong she really was.

“Do you think if I ask nicely, Jason will carry my bags into the hotel?” Leo asked.

Piper laughed and as she went to answer, another voice came from the entryway, followed by a plethora of heavy footsteps.

“Why don’t you ask me yourself?” Jason asked. He took a seat next to them. Behind him, Annabeth, Hazel, and Percy followed, sitting down as well. Frank bypassed the table, not before giving Hazel a sweet kiss on the forehead, and went into the kitchen to start making breakfast. It was Saturday, so it was his turn. Leo’s stomach swooped at the gesture and he couldn’t help but wish for Frank to do that to him as well.

“Sleep well?” Annabeth asked, “You guys were going at it for quite a while.”

Leo stared at her in confusion, terrified that she might have found out about Nico and him before he remembered the sleepover he’d ditched. He sighed in relief and wiggled a bit in Piper’s lap to get comfortable. She whined and gripped him tighter. Next to them Jason snorted and shook his head.

“Yeah, we had a lot of fun,” Leo said. He didn’t miss how Jason, Percy, and Frank were looking at him. It was best if he spoke first.

Jason seemed to get the message first and nodded as well, “Yeah we just watched a bunch of movies and fell asleep after a while.”

Piper huffed, “Ours was way cooler then. That was the best sleepover I’ve ever had.”

“That’s the only sleepover you’ve ever been to, Pipes,” Leo reminded her.

She jostled him, nearly making him spill his coffee but he managed to save it, “Shove it, asshat. You’re just sour that your sleepover wasn’t as cool as ours.”

“But did you watch Nemo?” Leo asked.

Even though he couldn’t see, he knew Piper was rolling her eyes, Jason’s fond smile was telling him as much. He had to look away. He didn’t want to throw up twice in one day, once had been more than enough already.   
Lucky for him, Frank emerged from the kitchen soon after, carrying plates upon plates with food and cups of coffee, followed by Bufford who was carrying even more food. Breakfast was always a big occasion with them. Seven people ate a lot anyway, and Seven half-bloods who were constantly active ate even more. Leo had learned the hard way that making one portion for everyone wasn’t enough.

“What’s that on your neck?” Hazel asked toward the end of breakfast. Leo nearly choked on his French toast. Fuck. He should’ve checked in the mirror after all.   
The table went quiet and all hopes that maybe no one had heard disappeared when six sets of eyes focused first on him, then on the blooming hickey on his face. He was truly, and honestly, fucked in every sense of the word.

“What?” He asked, reaching up to his neck to find the mark, “Oh, this.”

Everyone nodded and he smiled at them awkwardly, “That’s nothing. I was just messing around with the engines this morning and must have accidentally burnt myself.” He lied. He’d have to have a serious talk with Nico about leaving marks where others could see.

“It doesn’t look much like a burn mark, though,” Percy said.

Leo smiled and shrugged, “Bruises are weird like that sometimes.”

Percy narrowed his eyes at him but didn’t question it further. Leo knew they weren’t satisfied and they sure as hell didn’t believe his bullshit excuse of a lie, but it was the only thing he could come up with at that moment.

What he didn’t understand, was why everyone was looking at him like that. No, not him, his neck. Every couple of minutes someone’s eyes would flick to the mark there, a mean glint in their eyes coupled with usually a frown that disappeared the moment Leo caught them looking. He tried not to let it irritate him too much. He had more important things to worry about, like where and how to park the Argo II so no one would see. Yeah, whatever beef the others had with his neck; this was more important. Their weird glaring could wait for now. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eyyy im back and this time it's not even two months later who would've guessed  
> anyway, school's been kicking my ass but I've been doing my best to update this and keep working on it even tho I have other stuff I wanna focus on as well  
> either way I hope yall are okay with the way I added nico into the story, I thought itd be neat and my valdangelo heart couldn't resist  
> (don't worry its still a poly fic its just that nico's part of the mix now that's all)  
> i hope you enjoyed having a chapter from leos perspective for once I thought it might be fun yknow  
> anyway, I don't have much to say other than that, come talk to me in the comments I love seeing what youguys think about the chapters  
> also listen to gimme gimme by nct127 bc its a great song and I had it on repeat while writing this (it also served a bit as inspiration and the title of this chapter is from the song)

**Author's Note:**

> Please, please let me know what you think I'd love to know (all criticism is highly appreciated).
> 
> Comments, Kudos and anything else you want to give me are highly, highly appreciated (seriously they make my day ngl) :)


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